The family lawyer of slain former Saints defensive lineman Will Smith claimed in a Wednesday press conference that the former NFL player’s killing was deliberate and premeditated.
Peter Thomson, the Smith family attorney, said he was hitting back at “lies” being told by accused killer Cardell Hayes.
Ken Daley of the New Orleans Times-Picayune relayed video surveillance that showed Smith first rear-ending Hayes before attempting to leave the scene. According to Thomson, Smith did not realize that he’d hit the other vehicle.
Attorney: Leaving Sake, Will is not "inebriated." Orange Hummer suddenly stops in front of them, forcing them to slam brakes.
— Evan Woodbery (@TheSaintsBeat) April 13, 2016
Attorney: Will, Racquel were concerned for safety after Hummer braked; they saw no damage, so they continued on their way.
— Evan Woodbery (@TheSaintsBeat) April 13, 2016
Hayes’s vehicle followed Smith’s, according to Thomson, and rear-ended Smith so hard that his back windshield shattered. The two men then allegedly got out and exchanged words.
“The driver of the Hummer was enraged, yelling and cursing,” Thomson said, adding that Smith’s wife Racquel attempted to defuse the situation.
“(Racquel Smith) was actually telling the shooter, before the shooting occurred, ‘Leave us alone. Go back to your car. We have children. This is not worth this,'” Thomson said. “And holding her hand up to him to ask him to stop.”
Thomson alleged that Hayes then shot Racquel Smith first, one in each leg, before firing “six to eight shots” into Will Smith’s back. The Orleans Parish coroner’s preliminary investigation found that Smith had been shot eight times.
“We have evidence that the killer showed no remorse whatsoever, that he actually stood over Will Smith’s dead body, as his wife had crawled away because she couldn’t walk, and is cowering,” Thomson said. “The killer is yelling over the body of Will Smith after he killed him.”
Responding to reports that a loaded gun was found in Smith’s vehicle, Thomson said that he was not aware of any threats to use it and at no point was it carried or brandished in any way.
“I am not aware of any threats by Mr. Smith to go get a gun,” said Thomson. “I’m aware of nothing that Will Smith did that would cause this killer to be afraid for his life. There’s nothing Will Smith could have ever said to have caused that specific intent to shoot and kill him and specific intent to shoot his wife.”
The Smith family side of the story is very different than the one being told by those associated with Hayes. The case seems destined for a potentially ugly courtroom battle.
