NEW ORLEANS -- One car rear-ends another on a Saturday night. People argue. It escalates.Ten or so gunshots later, one driver is dead and the other waits nervously to give his side of the story to police.Conflicts settled by gunfire are tragically common in New Orleans, but there was nothing routine about this one: The dead man was retired football player Will Smith, a star on the 2006 Saints team who helped lift the stricken citys spirits with a winning season after Hurricane Katrina, and played with the team when it won the franchises only Super Bowl three seasons later.The accused is a 29-year-old former semiprofessional football player named Cardell Hayes. The owner of a tow-truck company and the father of a 5-year-old son, Hayes is described by friends as soft-spoken and even-tempered -- hardly the type to erupt into a lethal road rage. His attorney has been laying the groundwork for a self-defense argument ahead of a trial that opens Monday, but Smiths local popularity and national renown could prove to be obstacles.Will Smith obviously was a beloved member of the New Orleans community, Loyola University law professor Dane Ciolino said in a recent interview. And thats going to make the defense of this case all the more difficult.Smiths shooting death is strangely similar to that of Joe McKnight, another former NFL player who was shot and killed just last Thursday in a New Orleans suburb after a road rage incident on a bridge spiraled out of control. The man authorities identified as the shooter in that case -- Ronald Gasser -- has been released from custody with no charges as the investigation continues.Hayes has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in Smiths death. Conviction carries a mandatory life sentence. He is also charged with attempted second-degree murder in the wounding of Smiths wife, who was shot in the legs. He has been jailed since the April shooting, unable to make the $1.75 million bond.Snippets of surveillance video from near the scene, police statements, and testimony from pre-trial hearings paint a picture of what happened on April 9:Smith, his wife and two friends left a restaurant in New Orleans Lower Garden District and were heading downtown on Magazine Street. At one point Smiths SUV appeared to bump the rear of a Hummer that had come to a stop on the street.Rather than stop, Smith swerved his SUV around the Hummer and continued downtown. Moments later, the Hummer hit Smiths SUV from behind, shattering the rear window and pushing it into the rear of another car -- in which more friends of Smith were riding.Who the aggressors were in the ensuing conflict will be at issue in the trial. Hayes acknowledged to at least one police officer that he was armed when he got out of his vehicle. He said he was accosted by an unarmed Smith and others, and that Smith struck him, although police said there were no obvious signs of injury.The first officer to approach the scene after the crash was an off-duty rookie who had been at a nearby bar. Christopher McGaw has testified that he approached the scene as the argument grew more heated, ducked for cover when gunshots rang out, then approached again, finding Smith slumped across the front seat of his car, one hand extended toward the glove box.What was I supposed to do? Hayes is heard asking McGaw, on a recording of a 911 call McGaw had placed at the scene.Why Smith drove away from the scene of the first, apparently minor accident; whether Hayes intentionally rammed Smiths vehicle moments later; whether Smith was reaching for a gun when he was shot to death -- all are issues that will likely be addressed at trial.On the side of the defense is a toxicology report showing that Smith was legally drunk at the time of his death. Other factors Ciolino cited: The fact that Will Smith was, by some reports, so loud and belligerent; the fact that the forensic evidence arguably could support that Will Smith was reaching for a gun.Smith had returned to his SUV when he was shot and police said there was a loaded gun in the vehicle. That might help the defense argument that Hayes shot in self-defense, Ciolino said. But its an argument that could be blunted by the fact that Smith was shot eight times -- seven in the back, one in the side -- Ciolino added.Prosecutors also have made much of the fact that Hayess Hummer had hit Smiths SUV from behind so hard that the rear window shattered.Another odd twist in the case: A friend of Smiths who wound up at the scene the night of the shooting is William Ceravolo, a retired New Orleans police officer who had dined with the Smiths before the accident.Ceravolo was among six officers sued by Hayes after police killed his father, Anthony Hayes, in December 2005. Police settled the lawsuit in 2011, and the terms were confidential.Wholesale Balenciaga . After taking two big hits this week -- losing at home and dropping back-to-back games for the first time all season -- Indiana struck back by playing its most complete game of the year. Fake Balenciaga From China . Capitals head coach Adam Oates said Ovechkin was injured in the first period against the Vancouver Canucks on Monday and clarified it was not a head injury. https://www.fakebalenciaga.com/ . Once again, DeLaet finished tied for second at a PGA Tour stop on the weekend, this time at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. The pride of Weyburn, Sask. Fake Balenciaga Cheap . The parade and rally were held to celebrate the Saskatchewan Roughriders 45-23 win over the Hamilton Tiger-Cats on Sunday in the CFLs championship game. Fake Balenciaga Shoes . Halladay signed a one-day contract with the Toronto Blue Jays on Monday that allowed the veteran right-hander to retire as a member of team with which he broke into the majors and spent the bulk of his distinguished 16-year career.CLEVELAND -- The Cleveland Indians are chasing a division championship in the American League Central and the Miami Marlins are pursuing a Wild Card spot in the National League.On Friday night, the teams will meet in Cleveland for the first game of a three-game series, the final interleague games for both teams.The Indians are in first place in the AL Central, 4 1/2 games ahead of the second-place Detroit Tigers. The Marlins are in third place in the NL East, but are still very much alive in the race for the second Wild Card spot.With major league rosters able to be expanded starting Sept. 1, both the Indians and Marlins made several roster moves Thursday.The Indians officially added Coco Crisp to their roster. Crisp was acquired in a trade with the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday in which the Indians sent minor league pitcher Colt Hynes to the As.Crisp was acquired to replace Abraham Almonte on the Indians postseason roster, assuming they make it. Almonte is not eligible for the postseason after being suspended for the first 80 games of the season for a positive steroids test.If were fortunate enough to move on (to the postseason), we wont have Abe. Thats the reality of where we are, Indians manager Terry Francona said. Coco is a veteran player who has been through it before. He can play left field or center, and hes hitting really well with runners in scoring position.Crisp leads the majors with a .424 batting average with runners in scoring position.The Indians also recalled pitchers Cody Anderson and Joe Colon on Thursday, and infielder Erik Gonzalez from Triple-A Columbus. Catcher Adam Moores contract was purchased from Columbus, and the Indians designated Columbus outfielder Collin Cowgill for assignment.TThe Indians also activated pitcher Danny Salazar from the paternity leave list.dddddddddddd.The Marlins recalled pitchers Brian Ellington and Nefi Ogando and catcher Tomas Telis from Triple-A New Orleans. In addition, outfielder Destin Hoods contract was purchased from New Orleans. The Marlins also designated pitcher Raudel Lazo for assignment.The addition of Hood gives Miami manager Don Mattingly another option in the outfield, where the Marlins are short a man. Marcell Ozuna did not play in the Marlins 6-4 win over the Mets on Thursday night, due to a sprained left wrist. Ozuna hurt the wrist making a diving catch in Wednesdays game. X-rays were negative, and Ozuna is day-to-day.The Marlins can ill-afford to lose Ozuna for any length of time. With a month left in the regular season, Miami is still in the hunt for a spot in the postseason.I like our club and our makeup, Mattingly told MLB.com. Well see where we go this last month. We think its going to be a fun month for us. Were going to learn a lot about our team, playing in these types of games.The pitching matchup Friday will be Clevelands Carlos Carrasco (9-7, 3.23) versus Miamis Andrew Cashner (4-10, 4.73). This will be Cashners seventh appearance and sixth start since the July 29 trade that sent him from the San Diego Padres to Miami. In three starts since the trade, Cashner is 0-3 with a 4.61 ERA. He has never faced the Indians, nor has Carrasco ever faced the Marlins.Miami snapped a five-game losing streak with its win over the New York Mets on Thursday. The Indians are coming off a three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins. ' ' '
