A man who said he had been over-tanned in a tanning bed exposed his frustrations to an employee at Sunsation Tanning Salon on Sunday, police said.

A man wearing a white T-shirt and long running shorts went into the salon at 242 East Gate Drive S.W. about 3:45 p.m. and complained he had been burned just below the waist in a tanning bed, an Aiken Department of Public Safety report states.

The man pulled down his pants, exposing himself, and then asked for lotion for the burn, the report stated. He pulled up his pants and said he would return in a few minutes but never did.

The manager reported to police that his log showed no males had used his beds in the previous few days. The man had blond, graying hair and a tattoo on his right shoulder, the report states.

AUGUSTA
Sheriff, predecessor in crash

A four-car accident on a Hephzibah-area highway involving the Richmond County sheriff and his predecessor began when a driver answered his cell phone Saturday.

''The guy said, 'It's my unlucky day,''' when he realized who two of the three cars damaged were owned by, Sheriff Ronnie Strength said Monday of the accident that also involved former Sheriff Charlie Webster.

Billy Inman, 54, of Beacon Drive was driving his 1998 Dodge pickup on Georgia Highway 88 near Ramsey Road about 12:30 p.m. when he reached for a ringing cell phone.

When Mr. Inman looked down at the phone, his truck veered to the right, according to the accident report. Mr. Inman told police he was going 40 mph when he hit Mr. Webster's gray 2001 Chevrolet pickup.

The impact of the crash caused a chain reaction: Mr. Webster's truck hit a Chevy Tahoe parked in front of it, and the Tahoe hit Sheriff Strength's city-issued Crown Victoria.

COLUMBIA COUNTY
Semi wreck stalls I-20 traffic

Westbound traffic in the outside lane of Interstate 20 was blocked for more than two hours Monday night after a tractor-trailer overturned in Columbia County.

Columbia County sheriff's deputies closed both westbound lanes for another hour to tow the vehicle.

The driver, Mike Eller of Alexandria, Va., received minor injuries and was not transported to a hospital.

Mr. Eller was hauling 46,000 pounds of steel coil from Huger, S.C., to Atlanta when, at 7:28 p.m., the weight of his cargo caused the flatbed trailer to collapse, said Columbia County sheriff's Deputy Bobby Bradford.

As a result, the driver lost control of the vehicle and the truck turned over on its right side, Deputy Bradford said.

It was the second accident on I-20 in Columbia County in a week. Tammy Jane Muennink, 38, and her husband, James Michael Muennink, 37, both of Hondo, Texas, were killed Wednesday when their tractor-trailer swerved off the road, hit an embankment and crashed into a cluster of trees.

AUGUSTA
Three arrested in store robbery

Police arrested three men Monday in connection with an armed robbery last weekend of Sprint Food Store in the 3500 block of Deans Bridge Road.

Mario Orlando Hester, 22; Corey Napier Johnson, 17; and Malcolm Leon Jackson, 24, were charged with armed robbery and possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, said Richmond County sheriff's Investigator Paul Godden.

Mr. Hester was apprehended at the Wal-Mart Super Center in the 3200 block of Deans Bridge Road.

Mr. Johnson was arrested at his residence in the 1600 block of Harvey Drive. Investigator Godden said deputies discovered masks and clothing at the home, and a .25-caliber handgun that the suspect had in his possession.

The third suspect, Mr. Jackson, turned himself into sheriff's deputies at 9:45 p.m.

The trio was wanted in the robbery of Sprint Food Store Assistant Manager Jeanette Tasha O'Brien late Saturday night as she exited the store to make a nightly deposit.

Investigator Godden said Mr. Johnson entered Ms. O'Brien's car, pointed a gun at her head and demanded money. Mr. Hester and Mr. Jackson are being charged as accomplices in assisting Mr. Johnson in the robbery.

FLORIDA
Thomson slaying suspect moved

Matt Dean, the Thomson teen-ager accused of killing his parents and stabbing his sister Aug. 3, was discharged Monday from Halifax Medical Center in Daytona Beach, Fla., and sent to a rehabilitation center.

A Halifax Medical Center spokesman said Mr. Dean has been discharged. News reports said he had been transferred to a rehabilitation center near Daytona Beach.

Mr. Dean, 18, suffered two broken legs Aug. 4 when the car he was driving struck a truck towing a fishing boat in Brevard County, Fla. The driver of the truck, Eddie Delawder, died at the scene.

The teen has been charged in McDuffie County in the shooting deaths of his parents, David Dean, 40, and Terri Dean, 35. The two were shot in the head in the family's home on Twin Pine Road in the Belle Meade County Club subdivision.

Mr. Dean's 14-year-old sister, Bethany, survived three stab wounds and a blow to the head.

RICHMOND COUNTY
Two shooting victims recovering

Two Augusta men are recovering at Medical College of Georgia Hospital after being wounded in a shooting Sunday night at a grocery store parking lot.

Allen Davis, 47, who suffered gunshot wounds to his right buttock and left side, is listed in fair condition. Michael Brown, 27, who was hit in the right shoulder and left leg, is in good condition.

The men were shot about 9:30 p.m. while leaving the Sav-A-Ton in the 1600 block of Olive Road, witnesses and police said. A car was seen traveling east with its lights off, they said.

Richmond County Sheriff's Lt. John Francisco said neither victim could give information on where the shots came from or why anyone would want to harm them.

Anyone with information about the shootings is asked to call the Richmond County Sheriff's Office at 821-1020 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. or 821-1080 after hours.

AUGUSTA
Supermarket robber sought

Richmond County investigators are looking for a man they say robbed a grocery store at gunpoint last weekend.

A man concealing his identity with pantyhose and wearing a camouflage jacket and black jeans held up two cashiers at the Food Lion on Wrightsboro Road about 11 p.m. Saturday.

The robber fled with the money, Investigator Charlena Graham said. She described the robber as black, 5 feet 8 inches tall and about 160 pounds.

Anyone with information about the robbery is asked to call the sheriff's office at 821-1020 between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. or 821-1080 after hours.

SOUTH CAROLINA
Schools pass millage increase

BLACKVILLE - The Blackville/Hilda School District passed a tax increase after state budget cuts left the district short for its 2001-02 budget.

''It was 110 mills; it went up to 120,'' Superintendent William Sandifer said. The increase passed unanimously.

Mr. Sandifer said it is not a big enough increase.

''We never have enough money,'' he said.

SOUTH CAROLINA
Boy mauled to death by dogs

COLUMBIA - Lexington County authorities are investigating the death of a 2-year-old boy who was mauled by a pack of dogs in his back yard.

An autopsy was scheduled Monday for Donald Bryson Shumpert, whose body was found with bite marks and wounds on his head and lower body about 50 yards from his home Sunday morning.

County animal control officials took neighbor Sam Austin's nine dogs, including a Rottweiler, a pit bull, a beagle and a Labrador retriever, which are reported to have killed the boy, Sheriff James R. Metts said.

Investigators are looking into whether to charge Mr. Austin because his dogs were running loose. The county's leash law requires dogs to be in fenced yards or leashed.

The boy's parents, Kevin and Elizabeth Shumpert, told police they woke up about 8 a.m. and noticed Donald was missing. They searched outside after they discovered the front door of their mobile home was not latched. Mr. Shumpert found his son's body.

SOUTH CAROLINA
Law limits pickup bed riders

COLUMBIA - The Highway Patrol is warning South Carolinians that troopers will issue tickets to drivers who have children in the bed of a pickup truck if there is room for the youngsters in the cab.

''If a seat is available in the truck cab and kids are in the back, the driver will get a ticket,'' said Sid Gaulden, Department of Public Safety spokesman.

The tickets, which carry $25 fines, are being issued under the new seat-belt law signed July 3 by Gov. Jim Hodges. The law applies to children younger than 17.

Last year, 43 of the 91 pickup bed passengers who were hurt in crashes were younger than 19, according to department records.

GEORGIA
Funding shortage hits church

ATLANTA - The first phase of the $1.8 million renovation of historic Ebenezer Baptist Church, where the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. once preached, has been halted because the project is short by about $700,000.

If the money is not found, the annual January service that marks Dr. King's birthday might not be held there.

Ebenezer Baptist, located on Auburn Avenue in downtown Atlanta, is one of the city's most popular tourist attractions. It has been part of the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site since 1999 and is operated by the National Park Service.

Frank Catroppa, the superintendent of the historic site, said he has had a hard time raising money, particularly from Atlanta donors.

GEORGIA
Group wants gambling on agenda

ATLANTA - The Christian Coalition of Georgia is asking the governor to include video gambling as an issue for the Legislature to consider during a special session that begins Wednesday.

''The longer (this issue) is put off, the more entrenched this form of gambling becomes,'' said Sadie Fields, state chairwoman of the group. ''We're asking the governor to call for a complete ban of all these video machines across the state of Georgia.''

Gov. Roy Barnes has not said whether he will include a proposal to ban or restrict video poker during the session, which was called so the Legislature can approve new congressional districts. Legislators who spoke with Mr. Barnes last week said he wants to address it, but only if there is a consensus among Democratic leaders.

So far, there is no consensus, they said.

A legislative attempt to crack down on the games died in March on the last night of the regular session, when opponents ran out the clock and prevented a vote.