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CNN Live At Daybreak
Foul Play Suspected in Missing Baylor Basketball Player
Aired July 01, 2003 - 06:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Waco, Texas, are investigating whether a fellow teammate shot and killed a Baylor University basketball player, who disappeared nearly three weeks ago.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Patrick Dennehy transferred to Baylor a year ago and became friends with Carlton Dotson, a junior basketball player from Herlock, Maryland. One of Dennehy's apartment neighbors says he often saw both of them playing basketball on campus.
JON HART, NEIGHBOR: Him and Carlton Dotson were together, like, all the time. That would have to be, like, his best friend. So, I mean, if anyone would know, he would have to.
LAVANDERA: According to a search warrant issued by Waco police, an unnamed informant alleges he was told that a cousin of Dennehy's teammate and roommate, Carlton Dotson, says Dotson admitted shooting Dennehy in the head after an altercation. The informant says he was also told the two were shooting guns in Waco when the altercation started, during which Dennehy pointed a gun at Dotson, and Dotson then allegedly shot Dennehy.
Calls to Dotson's home number in Maryland have gone unanswered.
The search warrant goes on to say that the informant told police he had heard that Dotson -- quote -- "had gotten rid of the guns on the way back home to Maryland."
Waco police did not acknowledge this information in a Monday afternoon press conference, but cautioned people not to jump to conclusions about what's happening in Dennehy's disappearance.
CHIEF ALBERTO MELIS, WACO POLICE: We would caution everybody not to assume that a person or persons that we have spoken to is deemed a suspect.
LAVANDERA: University sources tell CNN that Dotson's basketball scholarship was not renewed, and he would no longer be a part of the Baylor team. The Baylor University community has been stunned by the latest development. When we spoke with one of Dennehy's professors before this news broke, John Cunningham told us how hard it's been to accept that Waco police suspect a fellow player might be involved. JOHN CUNNINGHAM, BAYLOR PROFESSOR: And to think that a family member is missing and to think even worse that a family member may have something to do with that makes it particularly difficult to deal with.
LAVANDERA (on camera): This court document is not an indictment of Carlton Dotson. He has not been charged with any crime, and he hasn't been named as a suspect. But the document does help explain why Waco police have been treating Dennehy's disappearance as a homicide investigation.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Waco, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired July 1, 2003 - 06:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Police in Waco, Texas, are investigating whether a fellow teammate shot and killed a Baylor University basketball player, who disappeared nearly three weeks ago.
CNN's Ed Lavandera has more for you.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Patrick Dennehy transferred to Baylor a year ago and became friends with Carlton Dotson, a junior basketball player from Herlock, Maryland. One of Dennehy's apartment neighbors says he often saw both of them playing basketball on campus.
JON HART, NEIGHBOR: Him and Carlton Dotson were together, like, all the time. That would have to be, like, his best friend. So, I mean, if anyone would know, he would have to.
LAVANDERA: According to a search warrant issued by Waco police, an unnamed informant alleges he was told that a cousin of Dennehy's teammate and roommate, Carlton Dotson, says Dotson admitted shooting Dennehy in the head after an altercation. The informant says he was also told the two were shooting guns in Waco when the altercation started, during which Dennehy pointed a gun at Dotson, and Dotson then allegedly shot Dennehy.
Calls to Dotson's home number in Maryland have gone unanswered.
The search warrant goes on to say that the informant told police he had heard that Dotson -- quote -- "had gotten rid of the guns on the way back home to Maryland."
Waco police did not acknowledge this information in a Monday afternoon press conference, but cautioned people not to jump to conclusions about what's happening in Dennehy's disappearance.
CHIEF ALBERTO MELIS, WACO POLICE: We would caution everybody not to assume that a person or persons that we have spoken to is deemed a suspect.
LAVANDERA: University sources tell CNN that Dotson's basketball scholarship was not renewed, and he would no longer be a part of the Baylor team. The Baylor University community has been stunned by the latest development. When we spoke with one of Dennehy's professors before this news broke, John Cunningham told us how hard it's been to accept that Waco police suspect a fellow player might be involved. JOHN CUNNINGHAM, BAYLOR PROFESSOR: And to think that a family member is missing and to think even worse that a family member may have something to do with that makes it particularly difficult to deal with.
LAVANDERA (on camera): This court document is not an indictment of Carlton Dotson. He has not been charged with any crime, and he hasn't been named as a suspect. But the document does help explain why Waco police have been treating Dennehy's disappearance as a homicide investigation.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Waco, Texas.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
