Lane’s Father Says Slain Player Told of Earlier Gunfire by Wife

Fred Lane of the Indianapolis Colts, shot to death in Charlotte, N.C., during an argument with his wife, reportedly told his father that Deidra Lane had fired a gun inside their home about two weeks ago.

Fred Lane Sr., who arrived Friday in Charlotte from Nashville, said Deidra Lane, 25, fired a shot through a wall, but didn’t shoot at her husband, who was traded in April from the Carolina Panthers.

“I told him to get the hell out of there now,” Lane Sr. said, and his son came to Nashville soon after.

Lane was shot to death in his home Thursday afternoon, hours after returning from Tennessee. He was 24. Police said the shooting occurred during a family argument.

Police talked several hours to Lane’s wife. Whether charges are filed will be determined by Mecklenburg County prosecutors, police said.

The Charlotte Observer reported Saturday that police sources said Lane was hit twice--in the head and chest.

The Tennessean reported that friends of Lane’s in Nashville said he told them that his wife had been draining their bank accounts.

Police and Mecklenburg County prosecutors wouldn’t talk about the reports or other aspects of the case.

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Raphel Cherry, a former Washington High quarterback and NFL safety with the Washington Redskins and Detroit Lions, has been granted a new trial nearly a year after being convicted of first-degree murder.

The Arkansas Supreme Court upheld Friday a lower court ruling that jurors for the original trial apparently violated instructions against talking about the case.

Cherry, 37, was sentenced last August to life in prison for the December 1998 killing of his estranged wife, Jerri.

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Othell Wilson, acquitted of kidnapping and rape charges in April, has had his contract as basketball coach at St. Mary’s College in Leonardtown, Md., terminated.

Alfred Johnson, who led the team to a 13-12 record after Wilson was arrested last September, has been appointed in his place.

Wilson, 38, had been coach for only a month when he was arrested on charges that he kidnapped and raped a 20-year-old ex-girlfriend.

Soccer

Zambia beat Togo, 2-0, at Lusaka, Zambia, in African regional qualifying for the 2002 World Cup, ending a three-game losing slide.

Harry Milinzi’s goal put Zambia ahead in the 25th minute and substitute Chaswe Nsofwer scored in the 68th, two minutes after entering the match.

Zambia improved to 1-1 in Group A, while Togo is 0-1.

At Tunis, Tunisia, Zoubeir Beya scored as Tunisia beat Madagascar, 1-0, to improve to 1-0-1 in Group D.

Next season’s FA Cup final, usually the highlight of the English soccer season, could be played in Wales.

With Wembley Stadium due for demolition this year before it is rebuilt by 2003, the Football Assn. has been looking for suitable alternatives and is thinking about the 75,000-capacity Millennium Stadium in Cardiff.

Jorge Rodas converted a penalty kick in the 85th minute Friday night to give Guatemala a 1-0 victory over El Salvador before an announced 18,152 at the Coliseum.

Miscellany

Triple Olympic champion Marie-Jose Perec of France finished third in her first 400-meter race in four years in the Nikaia Grand Prix at Nice, France.

Perec, slowed by a rare viral illness since sweeping the 200 and 400 in the Atlanta Games, finished in 50.32 seconds to qualify for the Sydney Olympics.

Amy Chow, Dominique Moceanu and Jaycie Phelps, members of the 1996 gold medal-winning gymnastics team, performed well enough in the U.S. Classic at Tulsa, Okla., to keep their hopes alive for another berth on the U.S. Olympic team.

While each of the three had some troubles, they all easily qualified for the national championships July 26-29 in St. Louis. The top 12 at that meet will advance to the Olympic trials.

Romania’s Beatrice Caslaru and Italy’s Massimiliano Rosolino became the first triple gold medalists in the European Swimming Championships at Helsinki, Finland.

Caslaru, who earlier won gold medals in the 200 medley and the 800 freestyle relay, won the women’s 200-meter breaststroke in 2 minutes 26.76 seconds, beating two-time European champion Agnes Kovacs of Hungary by 0.09 seconds. Rosolino swam the first leg on Italy’s 800 freestyle relay team. Her other golds came in the 200 medley and the 200 free.

The Milwaukee Bucks signed draft picks Joel Przybilla and Jason Hart, a former Inglewood High star.

Jerry Seeman, the NFL’s director of officials since 1991, will retire after the 2000 season.

Left wing Craig Berube signed a one-year, $700,000 contract to rejoin the Washington Capitals.

Norm Duke won his third PBA Tour title of the year, beating Chris Barnes, 236-228, in the final of the MSN Open at Tucson.