Lawyer: Passenger says Will Smith’s shooter saved client’s life

The attorney for the passenger in the car driven by Cardell Hayes, the man charged with second-degree murder of former New Orleans Saints star Will Smith, says his client believes Hayes saved his life.

Kevin Oneale, who said he was in Hayes’ Hummer H2 at the time of the shooting, told his attorney, Tanzanike Ruffin, that he believed Hayes saved his life in allegedly shooting Smith.

Ruffin issued a statement to WDSU NewsChannel 6, an NBC affiliate in New Orleans:

“My client believes that Cardell saved his life. Smith had a gun and was going to shoot it, and Cardell may have saved both of their lives … in my mind this is justifiable homicide. Was Will Smith acting like a saint? This was a hit-and-run that ended up in a tragedy. You’ve got the aggression of two [former] football players, facing off with each other as if they are on the field, and you are going to get your point across by any means necessary.”

Smith was killed around 11:30 p.m. local time Saturday after the cars collided  — perhaps even twice, which might have led Hayes to follow Smith prior to the shooting. Before turning over the case because of a conflict of interest, Hayes’ former attorney, John Fuller, said that Hayes’ Hummer was hit by a vehicle that didn’t stop so Hayes followed the car, believed to be Smith’s Mercedes, to get the license plate information.

Police not only retrieved a gun that they say Hayes used to kill Smith but also a loaded gun in Smith’s car. Initially, police said only one gun had been found at the scene.

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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm