Cardell Hayes trial slated for Sept. 18

The man who fatally shot former Saints player Will Smith and injured his wife seven years ago will go to trial this fall, a judge decided Monday March 6, marking the latest delay in a series of failed trial dates over the past year. Cardell Hayes, 35, is charged in the April 2016 shooting death of Smith in the Lower Garden District. He is also accused of shooting Smith’s wife, Racquel. Hayes’ trial has been rescheduled at least four times, the result of a lack of jurors, pandemic-related pauses, Hurricane Ida and a rare motion by prosecutors to change the trial’s location.