A convicted felon's history of arrests for murder, kidnapping and aggravated assaults did not keep him from coaching a youth basketball team in Hall County as recently as three years ago.

Raymond Woodring, 57, of Joe Chandler Road in East Hall, served nine years in prison between 1972 and 1993.

"A person's arrest record may or not be accurate," said attorney Arturo Corso, who recently was appointed to represent Woodring, charged in the slaying of his wife Wanda Corbin, 48.

"Many times you can be charged with a crime you did not actually commit," Corso said. "And the charge is (later) reduced to fit the fact. I don't think anybody can make any conclusions about Raymond Woodring today based on something he was accused of 30 years ago."

Records from Hall County's Parks and Leisure Department show that Wood-ring coached 9-year-old girls at White Sulphur Elementary School during the 2000-01 school year.

Woodring is being held without bond in the Hall County Detention Center after Corbin's partially concealed body was found March 23 in a ravine near Brookton in North Hall. A trial date has not been set.

"Booster clubs are supposed to screen the coaches they recruit," said Bob Brady, youth athletic coordinator for Hall County's Parks and Leisure Department.

Hall has about 20 such clubs with about 500 volunteers, Brady said. Most know the applicants for coaching positions as well as their backgrounds, he said.

Donald Watson, in his 13th year as principal of White Sulphur, said Brian Woodring, a relative of Raymond Wood-ring, was president of the school's booster club during the time Raymond Woodring coached.

Brian Woodring could not be reached for comment.

Raymond Woodring has "never been a problem here at school," said Watson, who indicated that he remembers Woodring picking up his child and attending Parent Teacher Organization meetings. "His past was never an issue at school."

Watson said he was not aware that Woodring coached in the school's gymnasium, which was made available for programs sponsored by the recreation department.

Practices are held after 6 p.m., and games are played on Saturdays, Watson said.

Gainesville, since the late 1980s, and Hall County, beginning last fall, have required background checks to prevent someone with Woodring's background from coaching in recreation programs.

During a recent search of several dusty boxes containing copies of team rosters, Brady found just one record documenting Woodring's involvement with youth teams in the county program.

Woodring made statements that led deputies to his wife's body after turning himself in, said Lt. Jeff Strickland, spokesman for the sheriff's office.

Jason Deal, district attorney for the Northeastern Judicial Circuit, has declined to reveal the cause of Corbin's death.

According to an arrest warrant, Woodring admitted striking Corbin in the head with a deadly weapon and admitted killing her between March 19 and March 21