NEW ORLEANS — The long-awaited retrial of the man accused of gunning down former Saints star defensive end Will Smith nearly eight years ago is set to begin with jury selection on Monday.
Cardell Hayes admitted to the April 2016 fatal shooting, following a confrontation fueled by road rage in the Lower Garden District. Hayes was convicted of manslaughter and attempted manslaughter eight months after Smith's killing and the shooting and injuring of his wife, Racquel Smith, both by 10-2 verdicts.
He had served four years of a 25-year sentence when was granted a new trial and released from prison in 2021 after the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed non-unanimous jury verdicts. Since the jury found Hayes guilty on lesser charges, he cannot be retried on the second-degree murder and attempted murder charges he originally faced.
As in the first trial, prosecutors and defense attorneys are expected to paint two very different versions of the facts on the night Smith was shot and killed. According to police, Hayes rear-ended Smith's Mercedes-Benz at Felicity Street and Sophie Wright Blvd., then shot him seven times in the back and once in the side. Smith's wife also suffered gunshot wounds to both of her legs.
Orleans District attorney Jason Williams who will be part of the prosecution team said, “One man rammed his car into the back of another man. He got out of the car angry with a gun, which no one should ever do and when Will Smith turned his back, he shot him in the back after shooting Will Smith’s wife.”
Hayes’s attorneys have claimed he was not the aggressor, but fired in self-defense, fearing that the angry NFL star was fetching a gun from his SUV's glove box during a heated argument following the crash.
Under Louisiana law, a homicide is justifiable when committed in self-defense by one who reasonably believes that he is in imminent danger of losing his life or receiving great bodily harm. A person must also be acting lawfully in order to claim stand-your-ground as a defense. The defense does not apply to a person who is an aggressor.
Last week, trial Judge Camille Buras denied a request by defense attorneys, Sarah Chervinsky and John Fuller to throw out the indictment against Hayes. They accused prosecutors of not turning over evidence that could help clear their client. The defense pointed out the recordings of four witnesses, including Smith’s wife, were either lost or stolen by the NOPD.
Prosecutors said the transcripts and court documents of the recordings still exist, minimizing the potential loss. While Buras denied the defense motion, she signaled she would consider another remedy during the trial. The judge agreed to a prosecution request not to release alternate jurors until after jury deliberations.
She also ruled the defense cannot introduce prejudicial character evidence against Smith.
Hayes' retrial has been delayed at least four times, the result of a lack of jurors, pandemic-related pauses, Hurricane Ida and a rare motion by prosecutors to change the trial's location.
He was expected to plead guilty in a negotiated plea deal September, but prosecutors said there appeared to be “some sort of change of heart" after the two sides couldn't agree on a sentence.
Judge Buras said she would call about 90 potential jurors during jury selection. She planned to seat twelve jurors along with four alternates.
The jury is not expected to be sequestered during the trial.
The trial is expected to take up to 5 days, following jury selection.
Will Smith was 34 at the time of his death.
WWL Louisiana Investigator Mike Perlstein contributed to this story.