Matt York, a professional hunting guide and owner of Backroads Guide Service, reflected on his actions during the Windham shooting, in which he intervened to cripple the shooter’s vehicle and then pursued him for several miles.

York is a native of the Lakes Region, having grown up in Windham and moved to Sebago in his 20s. He still has ties to Windham, where his parents live, and at the time of the shooting, he, along with his friend Kyle Beaudet, were in town renting a U-Haul to get supplies for one of his hunting cabins.

York said they pulled out of the U-Haul parking lot at Aubuchon Hardware in the early afternoon Friday, Aug. 15, and then turned right, heading toward The Home Depot. While York and Beaudet were waiting at the light, they heard what sounded like gunshots. They saw a man on a motorcycle, Erin Hayne, falling onto the pavement, with multiple people getting out of their cars to help him. As the shooter drove into the Hannaford parking lot, York and Beaudet decided they needed to do something and, while Beaudet called 911 and wrote down the license plate number, York drove into the parking lot and smashed into the back of the shooter’s vehicle.

Matt York, left, and Kyle Beaudet. (Courtesy of Matt York)

As the shooter was driving in front of Hannaford, York said he had his hand on the horn the whole time, trying to warn people about the shooter. From there, the shooter drove back onto Route 302, leading York and Beaudet in a loop twice before driving in the direction of Raymond. As the shooter was cutting through traffic in an effort to get away from the U-Haul, Beaudet remained on the phone with the police, updating them about the shooter’s location. Eventually, with York and Beaudet just two cars behind him, the shooter turned off of the highway onto Colonial Park Drive.

While pursuing him up the road, York said he saw smoke on the road from the shooter’s broken e-brake, and saw the shooter, with his driver-side door wide open, squeezing the trigger of his pistol. York and Beaudet then ducked, and nearly drove into the trees, before turning around and pursuing the shooter back onto Route 302. While York could not see the shooter at first, he could smell the smoke emanating from his vehicle, and pursued him toward Raymond. When they could no longer smell the vehicle, they pulled into Sunset Variety. York said he was later told the shooter had run into the woods and taken his own life.

In the aftermath of the shooting, York said he and Beaudet went to the Windham Police Station to meet with detectives. The picture the officers presented to him of suspected shooter James Ford, he said, was almost identical to his description.

“We are deeply grateful for Mr. York’s efforts providing the suspects license plate and vehicle description and calling 911,” said Windham Police Chief Kevin Schofield in an emailed statement. “It was extremely helpful. With that said, I would like to note that pursuing or engaging armed suspects is extremely dangerous; we are concerned for everyone’s safety. We are grateful to all people who called and assisted first responders during this tragic event.”

York believes that, by pursuing the shooter and driving him away from downtown North Windham, he and Beaudet saved lives.

“I think, if we didn’t do what we did, there were hundreds or thousands of people who watched it happen, we were the only ones who actually took chase and got his license plate number. He could have went into the Hannaford parking lot, he could have walked inside the building, started shooting people, or shot people in the parking lot. I think that once I rear-ended him, smashed into the back of him, whatever he had for a plan, he didn’t have time to do it.”

In the days since the shooting, York said he has received a good deal of recognition for his actions. Recently, while he and Beaudet were having dinner at the Fairgrounds restaurant in Cornish, the owners of the restaurant came out, shook their hands, and even paid for their meals. While York is appreciative of the strong community response to his actions, he said the people at the crime scene, who got out of their cars to render aid to the fatally wounded Erin Hayne, deserve recognition.

Responding to those who have been critical of his actions, saying that he should have let the police handle the situation, York said he did what he felt was right in the moment, and that he didn’t want to see anybody hurt or killed in the town where he grew up.