With past and present members of the New Orleans Saints watching in the courtroom, the widow of former NFL player Will Smith wept as the jury returned its verdicts Sunday night in the murder trial of Cardell Hayes, who was accused of killing Smith.After a week-long trial, the jury found Hayes guilty of manslaughter, as well as the attempted manslaughter of Raquel Smith. The verdicts were 10-2 on both counts and came after five hours of deliberation. The manslaughter charge carries a sentence of up to 40 years, and the attempted manslaughter up to 20. The jury also found Hayes not guilty of other charges, most notably second-degree murder, which carries an automatic life term. Sentencing is scheduled for February 17.The details of the argument were complicated and disputed. Hayes, 29, was accused of shooting the couple during an April 9 altercation that followed at least one traffic crash, with a disagreement about whether a second crash occurred. Prosecutors argue that Hayes acted in cold blood because of road rage, alleging that Smith, driving a Mercedes SUV, had rear-ended Hayes' Hummer and drove away, prompting Hayes to follow him. Hayes acted in self-defense, his attorney said, because it was Will Smith who was enraged, adding that it was possible Racquel Smith was struck by an errant bullet from her husband's gun—though prosecutors said Will Smith never had a chance to retrieve it from the car's console.Will Smith was shot eight times, including seven times in the back and once in his side. Racquel Smith suffered gunshot wounds in both legs.Here are details of the incident, as reported by NOLA, through the eyes of Kevin O'Neal, a passenger in Hayes' car:The incident began with an apparent fender-bender in which Smith's vehicle possibly bumped Hayes' Hummer. Testifying Thursday morning, O'Neal testified he and Hayes had left a house party, and were on Magazine Street driving back to a barber shop when Hayes asked, "'Someone hit us from the back?' And I responded facetiously, yes."All three passengers in Will Smith's Mercedes have testified that Will Smith braked hard to when the Hummer stopped short, but that they did not think it made contact.As Smith drove away, Hayes pursued him, crashing into Smith a few blocks away in the Lower Garden District. O'Neal testified that Hayes "smashed" on his brakes before he crashed into Smith's SUV. O'Neal said he was trying to call 911 and take a picture of the Mercedes license plate, but "everything came to a stop" with the traffic crash.Saints coach Sean Payton, along with former Smith teammates including Deuce McAllister and Pierre Thomas (who also was a witness in the trial) were among those seated in the courtroom during the announcement.Will Smith, who had not yet turned 35 at the time of his death, played nine seasons for the Saints, making the Pro Bowl in 2006; he finished with 67 ½ sacks in his career.McAllister said the guilty verdicts were not "a win for anybody."
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