MOUNTAIN CITY, Tenn. – A father who was upset after a Tennessee couple
deleted his adult daughter as a friend on Facebook has been charged in
the shooting deaths of the couple, authorities said Wednesday.
The victims had complained to police that Marvin Potter's daughter was
harassing them after they deleted her as a friend on the social
networking site, Johnson County Sheriff Mike Reece said Wednesday.
Potter, 60, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in
last week's slayings of Billy Payne Jr. and his girlfriend, Billie Jean
Hayworth. The couple was shot to death in their Mountain City home in
the far northeast corner of the state. Their 8-month-old baby was found
unharmed in Hayworth's arms.
"It's a senseless thing," the sheriff said.
Authorities have been involved other cases where Potter's daughter,
Jenelle Potter, believed she had been slighted by someone.
Marvin Potter's friend, Jamie Curd, has also been charged in the
killings. Curd, 38, had romantic feelings for Jenelle Potter, 30, the
sheriff said.
Potter and Curd were arraigned Wednesday. Potter asked for time to hire
an attorney while Curd was assigned a public defender who did not
immediately return a phone message.
Assistant District Attorney General Matthew Roark said Curd's initial
bond was raised to $1.5 million while Roark agreed to put off a bond
hearing for Potter until next week, when he is expected to have an
attorney. Potter remains jailed on his initial $200,000 bond.
The victims lived with Billy Payne Sr., who was the last person to see
them alive. He told detectives he saw Hayworth get up to feed the baby
before he left for work at about 5:30 a.m. on Jan. 31.
The slayings were discovered about five hours later when a former
neighbor stopped by to pick up mail the family would save for him.
The younger Payne was found in his bedroom, and Hayworth was found in
the baby's room.
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