BOLIVAR, Tenn. — Prosecutors have increased the severity of charges against the mother of a man who abducted two young Tennessee girls after he killed their mother and oldest sister.
Court records released Tuesday showed that Mary Mayes, 65, was charged after further investigation with especially aggravated kidnapping in the case that triggered a massive manhunt in north Mississippi in April. Mayes had faced a lesser charge of conspiracy to commit kidnapping in the abductions of 12-year-old Alexandria Bain and 8-year-old Kyliyah Bain.
Authorities say the girls were kidnapped after Mary Mayes' son, Adam Mayes, killed the girls' mother. Jo Ann Bain, and their 14-year-old sister, Adrienne Bain, in their home in Whiteville, Tenn., on April 27.
Prosecutors now believe that Mary Mayes confined the girls after her son and daughter-in-law drove them and the dead bodies from Tennessee to the Mayes' rented home in Guntown, Miss., according to court documents.
Authorities discovered the corpses of Jo Ann and Adrienne Bain buried in the backyard of the Guntown home. Prosecutors then filed murder charges against Adam Mayes, 35, who had disappeared with the two surviving girls.
After a long search, Adam Mayes fatally shot himself on May 10 as a SWAT team approached him in the deep woods and ordered him to surrender, just a few miles from his home. The girls were rescued and, after a brief stay at a hospital for treatment for dehydration, were returned to their family in Tennessee.
Outside a Hardeman County, Tenn. courtroom on Tuesday, Mary Mayes' attorney Terry Dycus said he did not know specifically what his client is accused of but he speculated that prosecutors might believe she restrained the girls in some way.
An affidavit filed in Hardeman County says that while Mary Mayes' alleged crimes occurred in Mississippi, her actions were a continuation of the kidnappings that took place in Tennessee. District Attorney Mike Dunavant did not provide details about the alleged confinement.
"Confinement is either holding them against their will or restraining them, I don't know," Dycus said. "That's something we're going to explore — what do they mean by confinement?"
Mary Mayes' bond was increased from $300,000 to $500,000 by General Sessions Judge Chip Cary on Tuesday. Her preliminary hearing and that of her daughter-in-law, Teresa Mayes, was rescheduled for June 19 pending psychological evaluations of the two women.
Adam Mayes' wife, Teresa Mayes, is charged with murder in the killings. She told investigators she saw her husband kill the mother and oldest girl, then drove him, the younger children and the bodies to Mississippi, according to court documents.
Neither woman spoke during their brief court appearance. Both were wearing orange jail jumpsuits.
Outside the courtroom, Teresa Mayes' attorney, Shana Johnson, said her client is doing OK and she has not said much about her husband's death.
"She's very happy that the two young Bain girls are OK," Johnson said.
Dycus, Mary Mayes' attorney, said she may have been abused by her son and a "battered mother" defense is possible. Dycus said that his client's relatives have expressed their desire to see her now that her son is no longer around.
After Mary Mayes learned that her son killed himself, her main concern was the safety of the girls, Dycus said.
"In one sense, she feels some relief," Dycus said of Mary Mayes' emotional state after her son's death. "She feels safe."