The late former Super Bowl champion and Pro Bowl defensive end of the New Orleans Saints, Will Smith’s alleged shooter, Cardell Hayes, has been reportedly sentenced to 25-years in prison.
Hayes, who was convicted of manslaughter in December 2016, was sentenced to 25 years, but with a jury vote of 10-2 the conviction was repealed after the U.S. Supreme Court sidelined “non-unanimous verdicts”.
According to Associated Press, Hayes was released on bond after serving more than four years of the initial sentence he was charged with and during the various retrial delays, he remained free; however, he was later taken back into custody after the “unanimous January 27th verdict”.
Smith’s teenage daughter Lisa was one of the individuals who shared her thoughts in the court prior to the sentencing. While expressing her sorrow, she bemoaned her father’s presence for her major life milestones and also added how her mother had to relearn to walk following the shooting incident.
As per the report, Lisa shared while in tears, “Mr. Hayes, you ruined my life. You took my father away from me. Our lives are forever changed as well. I ask for your mercy.”
During the confrontation that took place during the car crash in 2016 involving Hayes and Smith, the latter was shot eight times by the former. Hayes had maintained that he fired back in self defense as he mentioned that he saw Smith fetching a gun from his car, but his evidence could not be proved by the prosecutors. The evidence also showed that the former player was inebriated during the incident.
Smith was one of the icons of the Saints legacy and was selected in the 2004 NFL Draft in the first round as the 18th pick. He played with the New Orleans Saints from 2004 to 2013.
For one season, he joined the New England Patriots. He was inducted into both the New Orleans Saints Ring of Honor and the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame. The father of three children was also the NFL’s forced fumbles co-leader in 2004.
