Man convicted of manslaughter in killing of former New Orleans Saints DE Will Smith

The man who shot former New Orleans Saints defensive end Will Smith during an alcohol-related car accident has been convicted of manslaughter nearly eight years after the incident.

After four hours of deliberation, the jury convicted Cardell Hayes, 36, after midnight on Saturday. He will face up to 40 years in prison.

Hayes was acquitted during the initial 2016 trial for the shooting that killed Will Smith and injured his wife, Racquel. Hayes’ defense lawyer at the time argued to the jury that Hayes was acting out of self-defense and that he feared for his life during the altercation.

He was convicted of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter, but it was nonunanimous with a 10-2 jury vote. It was ultimately tossed due to the U.S. Supreme Court’s outlawing such a ruling and he was later released on bond after spending four years in prison.

The new conviction was delayed multiple times due to the COVID-19 pandemic, among other reasons. But now, many — including some of the city’s top prosecutors — are convinced that Hayes is guilty and that there was never a need to fire a gun.

“One gun was fired by one man,” District Attorney Jason Williams said through NFL.com, via the Associated Press.

Hayes fired the gun at Smith eight times. Seven shots were to his back with some of them hitting his wife’s leg. Evidence presented to the jury revealed that Smith was intoxicated during the incident — but no forensic evidence that Hayes ever had a weapon on his person.

During Smith’s football career, he was one of the leaders of the New Orleans Saints defense and was a part of the team during the 2005 Hurricane Katrina disaster and stayed on through the Super Bowl victory in 2010 until 2013, when he briefly joined the New England Patriots as a member of their practice squad.

While in the NFL, Smith compiled 618 tackles, 67.5 sacks, 19 forced fumbles and two interceptions across 139 total games with the Saints. During the Super Bowl season, Smith played in all 16 games during the regular season and posted a career-high 13 sacks — by far the most productive and overall successful in his career.

Shortly after his death, Smith was inducted into the New Orleans Saints Hall of Fame and in 2009 was named to the team’s Ring of Honor. His wife accepted the honors on his behalf.

“In my heart, he is here with us today in spirit,” Racquel Smith said in 2016. “There are moments that I feel Will with me and our family, and he is here today. He is here with us right now, just as proud as ever.”