Former New Orleans Saints player Will Smith's killer will plea guilty to manslaughter today. A legal analyst says it may avoid a trial, but it's not likely to make any party happy.
The public avoids the expense of a trial, prosecutors avoid the risk of losing a retrial, and Loyola law professor Dane Ciolino says the defendant, Cardell Hayes, will likely get a reduced sentence.
"I would expect he's going to get a significant discount on the 25 year sentence that he got the last time he went to trial," said Ciolino.
But in the end, says Ciolino, Hayes is still a convicted felon, prosecutors don't get the second degree murder conviction that Hayes was originally charged with, and the victim's family does not get Smith back.
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"It's a lose-lose-lose for everyone, but perhaps this was the best way for all involved to cut those losses," Ciolino said of the pleas.
Hayes does not deny fatally shooting Smith during a confrontation after a car wreck in the Lower Garden District in April 2016.
Cardell Hayes was convicted by a 10-2 jury verdict -- that conviction was overturned when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled non-unanimous jury verdicts are unconstitutional.
