Man who fatally shot ex-Saints star Will Smith after 2016 car crash gets 25 years in jail

The man who fatally shot retired NFL star Will Smith during a confrontation after a car crash in 2016 has been given a 25-year prison sentence in New Orleans.

Thursday marked the second time Cardell Hayes, 36, was convicted in Smith’s death. He was convicted of manslaughter in December 2016 and later sentenced to 25 years. But the jury voted 10-2 and the conviction was later overturned after the U.S. Supreme Court banned such non-unanimous rulings.

After a retrial, a unanimous jury convicted Hayes in January, rejecting defense arguments that Hayes fired in self-defense, believing a drunk and belligerent Smith had retrieved a gun from his SUV.

“This court has been grappling with this case since the time I got it,” said District Judge Camille Buras, who presided over both trials. Before sentencing Hayes, she acknowledged the strong support he received from friends and family, and testimony that he had been a model prisoner. But she noted that both Hayes and a companion were armed when they exited Hayes’ car after the crash. And she said Smith was unarmed when he retreated to his car “maybe to arm himself, maybe not.”

Smith was shot eight times – seven in the back – during the confrontation.

Smith, 34, and father of three – was a defensive leader on the Saints’ 2010 Super Bowl team

Smith’s family arrives at New Orleans Parish Criminal District Court before sentencing Thursday.

Smith’s widow Racquel Smith attended Hayes’ sentencing Thursday, eight years after she was shot in the legs in the aftermath of a 2016 car crash in New Orleans. Hayes has long said he shot in self-defense, previously testifying that he heard a “bang” before he fired

Buras also noted the damaging force with which Hayes’ Hummer rammed Smith’s SUV the night of the crash. Surveillance video from the night of the shooting showed Smith’s Mercedes SUV possibly colliding with Hayes’ Hummer and then driving away. Hayes followed them. He has said he did not intend to ram Smith’s car and the jury acquitted him of a charge related to the ramming during the 2016 trial.

Prosecutors had asked for the 25-year prison sentence, saying that while Hayes has expressed grief, he has never acknowledged wrongdoing. Defense attorney Sarah Chervinsky did not directly ask for a specific sentence, but noted that there was strong community and family support for Hayes, saying at one point in her argument, “Five years is enough.”

Smith’s daughter Lisa, now a teenager, was among those who spoke in court before the sentencing. She said her mother had to learn to walk again after the shooting and she felt sad that her father was not around for major life events.

‘Mr. Hayes, you ruined my life,” she said. “You took my father from me.”

In testimony in support of Hayes, his mother, Dawn Mumphrey, expressed sadness over the loss of Smith. “Our lives, too, have been changed forever,” she said, her voice shaking. She looked at the judge with tears in her eyes. “I ask for your mercy,” she said.

Hayes has long said he shot in self-defense. During his first trial, he testified that he heard a “pop” before he started shooting and that he did not shoot Smith’s wife Racquel, who was hit in the legs.

Hayes shot a drunken Smith in the back eight times seven times during the encounter

Smith’s daughter Lisa, now a teenager, once told Hayes during the trial, “You ruined my life.” You took my father from me.”

Evidence showed that Smith was intoxicated at the time of the confrontation. But there was no witness or forensic evidence to support Hayes’ claim that Smith had handled or fired a weapon. At the retrial in January, defense attorney John Fuller did not call Hayes to testify, but insisted that prosecutors had failed to prove that Hayes did not shoot in self-defense.

Hayes was released on bail in 2021 after serving more than four years of the original sentence. He was out of jail during multiple delays in the retrial, some due to the COVID-19 pandemic. But he was taken back into custody after the Jan. 27 unanimous verdict and awaited sentencing in the New Orleans jail.

The overturned 2016 jury verdicts also included a conviction for attempted manslaughter for the wounding of Racquel Smith. Hayes was acquitted of that charge during the second trial in January.

Hayes has already served more than four years in prison, for which he is receiving credit. He is also subject to strict supervision and house arrest. It was not immediately clear whether and how that would count towards his sentence. Buras said she would discuss that with prison officials.

Before Thursday’s sentencing, about two dozen of Hayes’ relatives and friends formed a circle and prayed in the courthouse’s wide hallway.

Smith, a 34-year-old father of three, was a defensive leader on the Saints team that lifted spirits in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina devastated the city in 2005. He helped the team to a winning season in 2006 and a Super Bowl victory in 2010. Smith attended Ohio State University and helped the Buckeyes win the 2002 national championship.

Hayes, who owned a tow truck company, once played semi-pro football and is the father of a teenager and a two-year-old child.