Road-rage confrontation: Killer of ex-Saint faces sentencing

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — It was a road-rage confrontation that cost former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith his life. Now, more than a year later, the man who pumped eight bullets into Smith is about to learn his punishment.

Cardell Hayes, 29, appeared to have caught something of a break at his December trial when a jury rejected the prosecution’s push for a second-degree murder verdict, which would have meant mandatory life in prison.

But New Orleans District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro said soon afterward that he believes Hayes deserves a 60-year sentence: the maximum 40 years for Smith’s death, to be followed by another 20 for attempted manslaughter in the wounding of Smith’s wife Racquel.

Wednesday’s sentencing hearing set for state District Judge Camille Buras’ courtroom is likely to echo the drama of Hayes’s trial, including testimony from Racquel Smith about the effect the shooting had on her and her three children.

“You’ll see a Cliff’s Notes version of the trial,” predicts Donald “Chick” Foret, a criminal attorney and legal analyst.

And it will likely draw a crowd, including local sports figures. Saints stars past and present — including coach Sean Payton, quarterback Drew Brees and former running back Deuce McAllister — often dropped in to the trial to show support for Smith’s friends and family.

Smith was cast during the trial not only as a football hero — part of the Saints team that lifted the stricken city’s spirits after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and the one that won a Super Bowl in 2010 — but also a beloved community leader who settled in New Orleans after retirement.