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Will Smith, Ex-Saints Player, Is Fatally Shot in New Orleans Will Smith, Ex-Saints Player, Is Fatally Shot in New Orleans
(about 1 hour later)
Will Smith, a former defensive end for the New Orleans Saints who played on its Super Bowl championship team, was shot and killed in New Orleans late Saturday, the authorities said. Will Smith, a former defensive end for the New Orleans Saints who played on their Super Bowl championship team in 2009-10, was shot and killed in New Orleans late Saturday, the authorities said.
Jeffrey Rouse, the Orleans Parish coroner, confirmed in a statement overnight Saturday that Mr. Smith, 34, had died of “multiple gunshot wounds” after an exchange of words with another driver. Jeffrey Rouse, the Orleans Parish coroner, confirmed in a statement overnight that Smith had died of “multiple gunshot wounds” after an exchange of words with another driver.
The New Orleans Police Department said early Sunday that a suspect in the shooting, Cardell Hayes, 28, had been arrested and charged with second-degree murder.The New Orleans Police Department said early Sunday that a suspect in the shooting, Cardell Hayes, 28, had been arrested and charged with second-degree murder.
The shooting occurred after a vehicle collision at about 11:30 p.m. Mr. Smith was traveling in a Mercedes sport utility vehicle in the city’s upscale Lower Garden District when he was rear-ended by an orange Hummer H2, the police said. At a news conference on Sunday, Michael Harrison, the police superintendent, said the shooting was an isolated incident but added: “It is certainly tragic at every level and on all sides. One life is over, and another life is ruined.”
The collision was powerful enough to send Mr. Smith’s Mercedes crashing into a third vehicle, a Chevrolet Impala whose occupants were part of Mr. Smith’s group, the police said. The shooting occurred after a vehicle collision at about 11:30 p.m. Smith was traveling in a Mercedes sport utility vehicle in the Lower Garden District, an affluent neighborhood, when he was rear-ended by an orange Hummer H2, the police said.
The driver of the Hummer and Mr. Smith “exchanged words,” and Mr. Hayes pulled out a gun and shot Mr. Smith multiple times, the authorities said. Mr. Smith’s wife, Racquel Smith, 33, was shot twice in the right leg, and was taken to a hospital. The collision was powerful enough to send Smith’s vehicle crashing into a third vehicle, a Chevrolet Impala whose occupants were part of Smith’s group, the police said.
Mr. Smith was pronounced dead at the scene. Smith and the driver of the Hummer “exchanged words,” and Hayes pulled out a gun and shot Smith multiple times, the authorities said. Smith’s wife, Racquel, 33, was shot twice in the right leg and was transported to a hospital.
The police said that Mr. Hayes was taken into custody at the scene and that the weapon used in the shooting had been recovered. Smith was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 34.
Witnesses told The Times-Picayune that they had heard a crash, followed by six to eight gunshots. Mr. Smith was seen slumped over the steering wheel. The police said that Hayes was taken into custody at the scene and that the weapon used in the shooting had been recovered. A passenger inside Hayes’s vehicle was questioned and released, the police said.
A statement from Mr. Smith’s family members expressed thanks for the support they had received and asked for privacy as they mourned “a devoted husband, father and friend.” Witnesses told The Times-Picayune that they had heard a crash, followed by six to eight gunshots. Smith was seen slumped over the steering wheel.
Players and coaches who crossed paths with Mr. Smith during his college and professional football career expressed grief as well as anger on social media. A statement from Smith’s family members expressed thanks for the support they had received and asked for privacy as they mourned “a devoted husband, father and friend.”
Players and coaches who crossed paths with Smith during his college and professional football career expressed grief as well as anger on social media.
In a statement on Sunday, the owner of the Saints, Tom Benson, and his wife, Gayle, said the killing would “leave a lasting scar on our community forever.”In a statement on Sunday, the owner of the Saints, Tom Benson, and his wife, Gayle, said the killing would “leave a lasting scar on our community forever.”
“Will was more than an exceptional football player,” the couple said. “He was a father, a husband, a son, a brother and teammate to so many and an inspiration to countless more.”“Will was more than an exceptional football player,” the couple said. “He was a father, a husband, a son, a brother and teammate to so many and an inspiration to countless more.”
Mr. Smith was born in New York and played college football at Ohio State. He was selected by the Saints in the first round of the 2004 draft. He was named as a Pro Bowl starter in 2006 and later became a defensive team captain. In an odd twist, Hayes appeared to have a connection to a man with whom Smith had socialized earlier on Saturday, a retired New Orleans police captain named William Ceravolo.
In 2010, he helped the Saints win their only Super Bowl, a victory that electrified New Orleans. His career sack total, 67.5, ranks fourth highest in franchise history. In 2005, Ceravolo, then a lieutenant, was present when Hayes’s father, Anthony, was shot and killed by New Orleans police officers, according to news reports at the time.
In 2012, Mr. Smith was suspended for four games for his involvement in the Saints’ bounty scandal, in which players were offered money for hits that knocked opponents from games. The suspension was later vacated. The authorities said officers opened fire on Anthony Hayes, who had a history of mental illness, after he argued with a pharmacy employee and then lunged at an officer with a knife.
He sustained a knee injury in 2013 that sidelined his career. Cardell Hayes sued the city over the killing, seeking $4 million in damages. The lawsuit was settled for an undisclosed sum in 2011, said Ike Spears, the lawyer who argued his case. Spears said he no longer represented Hayes.
The Saints said Mr. Smith had three children, William, Wynter and Lisa. Harrison, the police superintendent, said at a news conference that investigators had not yet determined a motive in Smith’s killing and were exploring whether he and Hayes knew each other.
He posted a photograph of his family in a 2014 tweet that promoted an initiative to help black and Latino youth. Harrison described Hayes’s lawsuit against the city as “interesting” but added that there was no information to indicate it played a role in the violence Saturday night.
Smith was born in New York and played college football at Ohio State. He was selected by the Saints in the first round of the 2004 draft, was a Pro Bowl starter in the 2006 season and later became a team captain.
In February 2010, he helped the Saints win their only Super Bowl, a victory over the Indianapolis Colts that electrified New Orleans. Smith’s career sack total, 67½, ranks fourth highest in franchise history.
In 2012, Smith was suspended for four games for his involvement in the Saints’ bounty scandal, with accusations that players were offered money for hits that knocked opponents from games. The suspension was later vacated.
Smith sustained a knee injury in the 2013 preseason and was released by the Saints after the season. The New England Patriots signed him that off-season, but he was cut before the 2014 season began and never appeared in another game.
Smith and his wife created a foundation, Where There’s a Will There’s a Way, to help at-risk young people in Utica, N.Y., where he went to high school.
The Saints said Smith had three children, William, Wynter and Lisa.
Smith posted a photograph of his family in a 2014 Twitter post that promoted an initiative to help black and Latino youth.