Former Baylor Player Indicted in Death

<br>WACO, Texas (AP) _ Melissa Kethley says she last saw estranged husband Carlton Dotson the night of June 12, driving a car that belonged to his former teammate, Baylor University basketball player Patrick

Wednesday, August 27th 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

WACO, Texas (AP) _ Melissa Kethley says she last saw estranged husband Carlton Dotson the night of June 12, driving a car that belonged to his former teammate, Baylor University basketball player Patrick Dennehy.

Kethley said she remembers Dotson becoming angry and paranoid after the two ate dinner and she couldn't figure out why.

``Something was just so wrong about him showing up that day,'' Kethley said.

Dotson, 21, was indicted on a charge of murdering Dennehy on Wednesday. The indictment alleges that Dennehy was shot on or about June 12.

Dennehy's body was found in a field near a rock quarry southeast of town July 25, four days after Dotson's arrest. An autopsy report said that Dennehy died of two gunshot wounds to the head.

Dotson, jailed in his home state of Maryland, faces a maximum penalty of life in prison if convicted. District Attorney John Segrest and other law enforcement officials have refused to discuss motive, which isn't mentioned in the one-page indictment.

Segrest's office Wednesday began the paperwork to formalize a request to Gov. Rick Perry's office to seek Dotson's extradition, but it isn't known how long that will take. If Dotson continues to contest extradition, a judge in Maryland will schedule a hearing.

``How long it will take to secure his presence here is anybody's guess,'' Segrest said.

Attempts Wednesday to reach Dotson's attorneys for comment were unsuccessful.

Kethley said she planned to attend a memorial service for Dennehy scheduled for Thursday at Baylor.

The case has rocked the Baptist school in Waco and prompted intense scrutiny of the school's basketball program. Coach Dave Bliss and athletic director Tom Stanton resigned Aug. 8. School investigators said they discovered that two players were receiving improper financial aid and staff members did not properly report failed drug tests.

In late July and early August, Bliss told players to lie to investigators and imply that Dennehy was dealing drugs, according to conversations secretly recorded by an assistant coach. After the tapes were made public Aug. 15, Bliss said he had heard stories about Dennehy but was wrong in trying to falsely portray him as a drug dealer.

Also Wednesday, Jesse Jackson urged the international basketball community to ban Bliss from coaching.

``He perpetuated a racial stereotype by casting young Dennehy as a drug pusher,'' Jackson said in a statement posted on his Web site. ``His lie was based on belief that people would accept that Dennehy, a black man, was a thug who sold drugs.''

A campus memorial service was planned for Dennehy on Thursday night.