Man who killed former Saint Will Smith sentenced to 25 years in prison
The man who shot and killed former Saints defensive end Will Smith received a 25-year sentence for manslaughter in New Orleans on Thursday.
Cardell Hayes was convicted of the crime in January. It was the second time that Hayes has been convicted and sentenced for the crime.
Hayes's first conviction came in December 2016 on a 10-2 jury vote, but was overturned when the United States Supreme Court struck down non-unanimous verdicts. A conviction for attempted manslaughter for shooting Smith's wife was also overturned and he was not convicted of that crime a second time.
“Mr. Hayes, you ruined my life,” Smith's daughter Lisa said in court, via the Associated Press. “You took my father away from me.”
Smith was shot and killed by Hayes during a dispute after a car crash earlier in 2016.
