Police blotter

Two arrested in woman's murder

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A Columbia County woman and her son were arrested Friday in the beating death of Laverne Katherine Parsons in her Grovetown home.

Christopher Bowers, 19, of 4086 Briarwood Drive, Martinez, and Rebecca Sears, 41, of 227 Hot Springs Drive, Grovetown, have been charged with murder and conspiracy to commit murder.

Police found Parsons, who was Sears' next-door neighbor and co-worker, lying on her garage floor Wednesday, beaten with a baseball bat and claw hammer. She died Thursday of blunt-force trauma to the head, said Columbia County Deputy Coroner Harriett Garrison.

A first appearance hearing was held Monday for Bowers and Sears. The hearing was closed to the public in case they said anything during the proceedings that could jeopardize the police investigation, said Columbia County Magistrate Judge Dale Jenereaux.

The hearing took place via a video conference from Columbia County Detention Center, where Bowers and Sears are incarcerated, with a magistrate judge at the county Justice Center, said sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris.

At the hearing, Bowers and Sears were informed of their rights and the charges against them, but no bond was set.

Bonds for felony charges must be set by a Superior Court judge, and bond hearings must be requested by defense attorneys.

Morris said that police searched the residences of Sears and Bowers, seized Sears' vehicle and obtained a search warrant for Sears' Augusta workplace, Healing Hands Physical Therapy Center on Highland Avenue. Parsons worked at the Thomson location of the therapy center, according to the company's Web site, which was taken down last week.

Sears was shot in the leg at work Thursday evening by a man who had threatened her, she told Richmond County police.

Morris would not comment on a possible connection between the shooting of Sears and Parsons' death. Asked whether the shooting was meant to distract police, he did say it was "a reasonable assumption."

The following accounts were taken from reports from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office. Additional reports are available at www.columbiacountyso.org:

Woman arrested

A woman was charged with shoplifting Thursday after an employee at Palm Beach Tan saw her place a container of tanning lotion into her purse.

On leaving the Evans tanning salon and being approached by police about 4:30 p.m., Catina Maria Kelly, 34, said she took the lotion because employees were too busy to help her. She said she intended to return the next day to pay for the $79 Australian Gold lotion.

She was released from the Columbia County Detention Center Thursday evening on a $1,600 bond.

Two pickups stolen

An Appling man told police Thursday that two pickups had been taken from his driveway on Crystal Creek Lane.

The 27-year-old said he last saw the 2005 Chevrolet C1500 and 2008 Chevrolet C2500 Wednesday. Their value was estimated at $45,000. He said the trucks were unlocked.

Man interrupts theft

A Martinez man told police that three men tried to steal his Yamaha motorcycle Thursday.

The 32-year-old said that about 10 p.m. he saw three men pushing his motorcycle, worth about $10,000, from his garage on Loblolly Trail and yelled for them to stop. They dropped it in a neighboring driveway and ran toward Clark Pointe, he told police.