Ex-NFLer Will Smith's alleged killer called police himself
NEW ORLEANS - Former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith was shot and killed following a car crash after a night out with his wife, who was also shot but is in stable condition, and police are confident they have the shooter.
The lawyer for the suspect, 28-year-old Cardell Hayes, however, insists that the case is about more than simple road rage.
On Saturday night, after enjoying the French Quarter Fest and a dinner at Sake Café, the couple hopped in their Mercedes G63 and headed home to the Garden District. Around 11:30 p.m. Hayes' Humvee H2 rear-ended Smith's car, pushing it into a Chevrolet Impala driven by two of Smith's acquaintances. The two argued, and Hayes shot both Smith and Smith's wife, Racquel, police said. She was taken to a hospital with a leg wound.
Defense attorney John Fuller said that before Hayes and Smith connected, Hayes had been chasing a hit-and-run driver who had rear-ended his Humvee and sped off. Fuller wouldn't say whether Hayes identified the Mercedes as that vehicle.
"My client attempted to pursue that vehicle in an effort to get the license plate number and in an effort to report an accident," Fuller said. "As he attempted to close on this vehicle, a three car accident occurs: Smith's vehicle, my client's vehicle, and another vehicle."
Fuller said Hayes called 911 after he was hit and convinced a witness who was about to leave to remain and talk to police.
Police spokesman Tyler Gamble told The Associated Press in an email Sunday that he had no immediate information about the witness or the 911 call, although police have said previously that Hayes himself did call 911 at some point, and remained on the scene until authorities arrived.
Online court records show Hayes pleaded guilty in 2014 to one count each of possessing an illegal weapon and possessing drug paraphernalia.
The gun he had Sunday was legal, Fuller said, noting that police didn't accuse him of any weapons charge. Gamble said the gun hadn't been reported stolen, but tracing its actual history takes more time.
An initial investigation has shown Smith was shot in the back and side, according to a warrant read in court Sunday night before a magistrate set a $1 million bond for Hayes.
Police have said publicly so far that Smith, 34, was killed in a case of road rage by a man who had rear-ended his car.
Hayes has been booked on a charge of second-degree murder. Prosecutors have 60 days to decide whether to bring that charge against Hayes.
Fuller asked for low bond Sunday night, noting that Hayes had waited for police, owns a towing business and is raising his 5-year-old son.
Magistrate Brigid Collins said she understood but, according to the warrant, "I've also got a gentleman who was shot in the back."
Smith and his wife, who have three children, had been at the French Quarter festival, which features local music and food, in the hours before the shooting. He posted a photo of himself and his wife on Twitter and Instagram.
Hayes sued the New Orleans Police Department and six officers after police killed his father in 2005. Police settled the lawsuit in 2011. The settlement is confidential, said attorney Ike Spears, who represented Hayes in that lawsuit.
Smith was beloved by fans for his role in New Orleans' 2009 Super Bowl championship, though the defensive captain also was at the center of the NFL's bounty probe in 2012, the last year he played in an NFL regular season game.
The league concluded that Smith and fellow defensive captain Jonathan Vilma helped run a locker-room pool that paid cash bonuses for heavy and even injurious hits.
Smith successfully appealed a four-game suspension, though coach Sean Payton was suspended the entire 2012 season.
A year earlier, however, Smith served a two-game suspension for using a weight-loss product that included a diuretic banned by the league for masking steroid use.
Smith, a native of Queens, New York, played for Ohio State's 2002 national championship team and graduated in 2005 with a degree in criminology.
New Orleans chose him in the first round of the 2004 draft. He led the Saints with a career-high 13 sacks in 2009. Smith's 67 ½ career sacks rank fourth in Saints history. The New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame says Smith had been unanimously voted into the hall last month.
Off the field, Smith established a foundation "to motivate, educate and provide opportunities for women and children."
The Smith family said in a statement Sunday that they were thankful for the outpouring of support but requested privacy as they grieve.