TRENDING NEWS:Cardell Hayes found guilty in ’16 killing of ex-Saints DE Smith

Following a car accident about eight years prior, the man who shot and murdered former New Orleans Saints defensive end Will Smith was found guilty of manslaughter on Saturday morning.

After the verdict in a retrial of the 2016 case, Cardell Hayes may spend up to 40 years behind bars. After the jury debated for almost four hours, Hayes was found not guilty of attempted manslaughter for the shooting that wounded Smith’s wife, Racquel, during the same altercation.

The senior prosecutor in the city maintained that Hayes fired needlessly, while a defense attorney maintained that Hayes had a legitimate fear for his life when he shot Smith.

Following a car accident about eight years prior, the man who shot and murdered former New Orleans Saints defensive end Will Smith was found guilty of manslaughter on Saturday morning.

After the verdict in a retrial of the 2016 case, Cardell Hayes may spend up to 40 years behind bars. After the jury debated for almost four hours, Hayes was found not guilty of attempted manslaughter for the shooting that wounded Smith’s wife, Racquel, during the same altercation.

The senior prosecutor in the city maintained that Hayes fired needlessly, while a defense attorney maintained that Hayes had a legitimate fear for his life when he shot Smith.

A number of factors, including court closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, contributed to the postponement of his retrial.

After the prosecution rested its case against Hayes on Friday, the defense decided not to call any more witnesses.

During the closing statements, Assistant District Attorney Matt Derbes acknowledged that Smith had been intoxicated when Hayes crashed into the back of his car, just prior to the shooting, and that a heated dispute had resulted. He also admitted that Smith’s automobile had a pistol in it. However, there was no testimony or proof that he was able to get it back.

John Fuller, the defense lawyer, said that the prosecution had not shown that Hayes did not act in self-defense. Fuller indicated that Hayes was audible in the background of a 911 call made shortly after the incident, during which Smith had declared he was going to retrieve a gun from his car.

During his trial in 2016, Hayes, 36, maintained that he had shot Smith in self-defense during their April 2016 altercation.

Fuller attempted to disprove the assertions made by the prosecution that Racquel Smith had already soothed her husband before Hayes started shooting.

Referring to prosecution testimony regarding Racquel’s attempts to diffuse the conflict, he added, “You don’t say, ‘Calm down, it’s not worth it,’ if you don’t have to say, ‘Calm down, it’s not worth it.”

Will Smith was drunk at the time of the altercation, according to the evidence. But Hayes’s allegation that Smith had discharged or handled a weapon was unsupported by either forensic evidence or eyewitness accounts.

The 34-year-old father of three, Smith led the Saints’ defense and helped to restore hope to New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina’s devastation to the city in 2005. In 2006, he contributed to the team’s winning season, and in 2010, he helped the squad win the Super Bowl.

Racquel Smith and her family released a statement saying, “Every time we stepped into this courthouse, we were forced to relive the worst moments of our lives.” “As painful as it was to sit and listen to autopsy findings and untruths about the night Will was killed, and I was shot, we arrived each day courageous and strong because we were fighting for Will. I can tell my kids, looking them in the eyes, that I gave everything I had to seek justice for Will.”

Hayes was a former semipro football player and owner of a tow truck company. He is the father of one boy.