As an Oklahoma town comes to grips with the apparent senseless killing of an Australian baseball player on its streets , one man is offering a possible motive : gang violence . James Johnson says the three boys now charged in the shooting death of Christopher Lane tried to recruit his son into a gang , then threatened to kill him if he refused . He said he thinks Lane was killed as part of a gang initiation . `` I do n't think it was for fun . I do n't think it was at random , '' Johnson told Australia-based Fairfax Media from his home in Duncan . D.A . : No evidence of a hate crime . The case posed questions of race early on because two of the three suspects are black and Lane was white . One of the suspects allegedly posted a message on Twitter in April saying he hated white people . Suspect tweeted : `` time to start taken life 's '' District Attorney Jason Hicks acknowledged Friday the post seems racial in nature , but said the case will not be prosecuted as a hate crime . `` At this point , the evidence does not support the theory that Christopher Lane was targeted based upon his race or nationality , '' Hicks said in a statement . Duncan Mayor Gene Brown said he does n't think Lane 's killing was a hate crime , either . He told CNN 's `` Erin Burnett OutFront '' the crime is just the result of bad choices made by young people . `` I think everybody that lives here wishes it would not have happened in our community , regardless of what race '' the victim is , Brown said . `` I think that we are more concerned with just making sure that everything is taken care of for ( Lane 's ) family and that they get all of the things that they need in order to get him home safely and take care of their loved ones . '' Suspects arrested after 911 call . It was Johnson who made the call to police that resulted in the arrests of the three suspects : James Edwards , Jr. , 15 , Chancey Luna , 16 , and Michael Jones , 17 . Edwards and Luna are charged as adults with first-degree felony murder ; Jones is charged with using a vehicle in the discharge of a weapon and accessory after the fact to first-degree murder . Johnson was working on his truck in a church parking lot last Friday when the three teens drove up . He had just gotten off the phone with his son , Chris , who told his father about the threat on his life . Chris lives in a house with his mother across the street from the church . It was two hours after Lane 's death . Johnson , unaware of the crime , called 911 to report the teens had guns and had already threatened his son . He knew the boys -- and even mentioned Edwards by name in the call -- because the four teens had grown up together , he told Fairfax Media . Police arrived and took the three into custody . Police say Jones later told them , `` We were bored and did n't have anything to do , so we decided to kill somebody . '' Opinion : Negligent parents , lawbreaking kids . Edwards ' older sister , Rachel Padilla , told CNN on Thursday that her brother hung around with some older guys who were thought to be in a gang , and that other people have told her Edwards was in one -- but she said she does n't want to believe it . Asked about it by CNN , Duncan Police Chief Danny Ford said there are no gang members in town . Brown , the mayor , said the town has been able to control gang activity . `` That 's not to say that something might slip in on us , but I do n't think we have a real problem with that , '' Brown told CNN . `` If we do , we definitely need to look into it . '' Shock and sorrow after shooting . Richard Rhodes , a 37-year-old contractor who was working on a house near where the shooting happened , tried to save Lane 's life by performing CPR , he told Fairfax Media . `` I was like this , telling him , 'Buddy , stay with us ; stay with us , ' '' Rhodes said , showing how he knelt next to the victim . Lane , 23 , was gasping for air , and soon the gasps stopped . Rhodes and a woman together performed CPR until it became apparent that Lane had died , Fairfax reported . Lane 's friends and family are being invited to a memorial game in his honor Sunday , and a donation page has been set up to raise money for a memorial fund in his name . A former student and classmate at East Central University , where Lane was studying , described him as `` a charming guy , genuinely good person , with great character and had a love for life . '' `` As cliched as it sounds , Chris was the kind of guy you want your sons to grow up to be and that you want your daughters to marry . It just breaks my heart knowing how much more he could have brought to this world as a husband , father , son , brother and friend , '' Sam Malchar said .
The city 's attorney says he does n't feel it was a hate crime . DA says the case should not be treated as a hate crime . One man says it could have been gang - related .