British Soccer Fan Gets Life Term

A soccer fan who slashed an American in the face and wrists with broken glass and left him permanently scarred was jailed today for life, the longest prison sentence ever handed down by a British court for soccer violence.

Judge Michael Argyle handed down the life sentence to Kevin Whitton, 25, a tile layer. Whitton fought with prison officers as he was dragged from the dock at the Old Bailey amid screams and protests from hysterical relatives.

Whitton, a fan of the London soccer club, Chelsea, was among a group of 20 young people who fought and terrorized customers at a pub before a match against Manchester United last December. Whitton cut Neil Hansen, currently a personnel director in Seattle, Wash., on the face with a beer glass and slashed his wrists.