Will Smith, the former Saints defensive end, was killed and his wife was wounded in a late-night shooting in New Orleans on Saturday (April 9), authorities said.
Orleans Parish Coroner Dr. Jeffrey Rouse confirmed Smith was the fatal victim in the incident. Police said Smith's wife was wounded and was taken to a hospital. The shooter is being questioned, police said.
NOPD Chief said investigators at this point have no information to suggest the two men knew each other prior to the shooting, or that it was "anything other than an accident that turned into a dispute which turned violent."
The double shooting took place around 11:29 p.m., near the intersection of Sophie Wright Place and Felicity Street in the Lower Garden District, NOPD said.
Police said Smith, 34, and his wife, Racquel, were traveling eastbound on Sophie Wright Place when their Mercedes Benz SUV was rear-ended by a Hummer H2. The collision caused the Smith's vehicle to hit a Chevrolet Impala traveling along the same street.
Scene Of The Shooting Death Of Former Saint Will Smith
Video from the scene in the lower Garden District as New Orleans Police investigate the murder of former Saints defensive end Will Smith.
Smith and the driver of the Hummer "exchanged words, at which time the driver of the Hummer produced a handgun and shot the male victim (Smith) multiple times and his 34-year-old wife twice in the right leg," said NOPD spokesman Juan Barnes.
Smith was pronounced dead at the scene. Racquel Smith was transported to a hospital, authorities said. Police said the 30-year-old driver of the Hummer is in custody and being interviewed by investigators. The gun used in the shooting has been recovered.
The man accused of killing Will Smith and wounding his wife is a former New Orleans prep football star.
A witness at the scene, Janis Baehr, a tourist in town for the French Quarter Festival, said she was walking near the intersection and heard the crash and then six to eight gunshots. "It was a crash, boom, band," she said. She then saw a woman down on the pavement and went to her aid, giving her ice chips.
The witness said the woman appeared to have two gunshot wounds to her leg. "I kept her company until the paramedics came because she was screaming," Baehr said.
The woman was taken away by ambulance.
A man, who would only give his first name as Michael, said he was on the street and heard the crash, followed by gunshots. He said he took cover in nearby bushes with his dogs.
Defensive end was defensive captain, Super Bowl champion in 10 seasons with the Saints
A woman, who lived near the scene, but declined to give her name, said she heard noises outside and saw a woman arguing with a man, but when she heard gunshots, she ran back inside of her house.
Smith was slumped over the steering wheel of his vehicle, which appeared to have a gunshot hole in the windshield.
New Orleans police and the coroner's office remained scene investigating. At around 2:45 a.m., Smith was removed from the scene in a coroner's van. A tow truck arrived to take his vehicle from the street.
Shooter Cardell Hayes.
