Man Charged with Shooting TV Weatherman with Crossbow

(JOHNSON CITY, Tenn.) -- A Tennessee man has been arrested and accused of shooting his former roommate, a TV weatherman, with a crossbow during a home invasion.

Gerald Taylor, 53, is accused of breaking into the home he once shared with Rob Williams early Monday morning and shooting him with a crossbow. Taylor allegedly also fired a pistol at Williams but missed, according to Johnson City police.

Taylor fled the scene on foot and was apprehended on a boat dock below the home, police said.

“Mr. Taylor was found to have a pistol in his hand when approached by officers and after a brief stand-off, and being tased by officers, he was taken into custody without further incident,” police said in a statement.

Williams, who works as a meteorologist at local CBS affiliate WJHL, had served Taylor with an order of protection on May 29, according to Johnson City Police, forcing the suspect to vacate the home.

It was unknown what caused the falling out between the two men.

The meteorologist said he is recovering and thanked well-wishers for their concern.

Taylor faces charges of attempted first degree murder, aggravated burglary and violation of an order of protection.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Governor Haslam Signs Grocery Tax Bill

(WHITWELL, Tenn.) -- Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam has signed a bill that will cut the state's grocery sales tax by from 5.5 to 5.25 percent, according to a report in the Times Free Press of Chattanooga.

The new piece of legislature will go into effect on July 1.  The tax cut will save each grocery customer 25 cents per every $100 sold.  Governor Haslam also spoke about a plan to cut the tax even lower, to five percent, in 2013, according to the report.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Land Seized for Marijuana Cultivation Now Open to Public

(CANNON COUNTY, Tenn.) -- Nearly 1,000 acres of land in Tennessee that had been seized several years ago after it was discovered it was being used for marijuana cultivation is now open to the public, according to a report in The Chattanoogan.

The land is on Short Mountain in Cannon County.  The area is home to some unique wildlife.  Hikers and hunters are now free to access the land, which will also be used for a Bible camp and farming collective, according to the report.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Romney Outgaining Obama in Tennessee Donations

(WASHINGTON) -- Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney is outgaining President Barack Obama when it comes to campaign donations in the state of Tennessee, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.

So far, President Obama has raised $1 million from 2,527 donors for an average of $164 per donor, while Romney has received $1.5 million from 1,028 people for an average of $952 per donor, according to the report.

Vanderbilt University political science professor Bruce Oppenheimer told the News Sentinel that the Obama campaign is focusing on smaller internet contributions while Romney has turned his attention to fundraisers, which can raise a lot of money at once.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio

Body of Former Tennessee's 'Most Wanted' Unclaimed at Crime Lab

(WHITEVILLE, Tenn.) -- The Mississippi state crime lab is trying to figure out what to do with the body of Adam Mayes, the man who allegedly murdered a mother and daughter and kidnapped the woman's two other daughters before shooting himself.

The lab has had Mayes' body since mid-May, and doesn't know what to do with it.  Mayes' family won't accept his body.  If no one takes the body after six months, it has to be returned to Union County, where he died.

According to Mississippi state law, if there are any living relatives, it is the family's responsibility to take care of the body.  But Mayes' wife and mother are behind bars in connection to the two murders and kidnappings.  Mayes' brother refuses to accept the body.

Police believe Mayes killed Jo Ann Bain and her daughter, Adrienne Bain, 14, in their home in Whiteville, Tenn., on April 27, and then fled with Bain's two other daughters, Alexandra, 12, and her sister Kyliyah, 8.

The two girls were rescued after a nearly two-week ordeal.  On May 10, Mississippi state highway troopers spotted a small blonde child peeking over a ridge, police said, which led to the girls' rescue.

Moments later, Mayes shot himself as he knelt in the grass next to the children, in what his mother-in-law called the "coward's way out."

Mayes is suspected of killing the girls' sister and mother in order to kidnap the younger girls, whom he thought were his children, relatives have said.  The girls had been living with Jo Ann and her husband, Gary Bain, and the family was planning to move to Arizona at the end of the school year.

When Adam Mayes went on the run with the girls, he was put on the FBI's Top 10 Most Wanted List.

His wife Teresa Mayes is charged with murder and especially aggravated kidnapping for her role in assisting Mayes.  She is being held in a Tennessee jail.

During the investigation, police also arrested Mayes' mother, Mary Mayes, in connection with the murder and kidnapping.

Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio