Prosecutors said in a Las Vegas courtroom Wednesday former Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs was driving 156 miles per hour before the fatal car accident he was involved in Tuesday morning.
The prosecutors said the Chevrolet Corvette Ruggs was driving was going 127 miles per hour when the airbags deployed.
“I cannot recall a speed that high in my career on the bench,” said Judge, who ordered a $150,000 bail for Ruggs and the highest level of electronic monitoring if he is released. Prosecutors had requested a $1 million bail.
Probation is not an option in Nevada for a conviction on a charge of DUI causing death, which carries a possible sentence of two to 20 years in state prison. The possible sentence for reckless driving is one to six years in prison, with probation available.
According to veteran defense attorneys with experience in DUI cases asked by Yahoo Sports to look at the case, that defense investigation is about the 22-year-old Ruggs’ only hope. If the facts of the case are what the LVPD say they are – and circumstances suggest they are – then there is almost no way he avoids serving time. As such, his NFL career is potentially over just as it was getting started.
“He is in serious trouble,” said Chris Scott, a former prosecutor and now defense attorney for the Christopher Scott Law Offices in Kansas City, Missouri. Scott has prosecuted and defended scores of DUI cases. “That does not mean he is guilty. He has the presumption of innocence, but based on what is out there, he is in serious trouble and faces a lot of exposure.”
“Based on what we know right now, the situation is not good,” said Craig Mordock of Mordock Legal in New Orleans, where he has defended nearly 1,000 DUI cases including numerous that involved “negligent homicide” charges.
Per reports:
Prosecutor Eric Bauman said computer records for the air bags showed the Corvette decelerated from 156 mph to 127 mph before it struck the Toyota. Bonaventure rejected Bauman’s request for $1 million bail and set bail, at Chesnoff’s request, at $150,000 with strict conditions, including home confinement, electronic monitoring, no alcohol, no driving and the surrender of Ruggs’ passport.
Bauman said Ruggs’ blood-alcohol level was 0.161%. Police said previously in a statement that Ruggs “showed signs of impairment.” Bauman also said a loaded firearm was found on the floor of the car.
Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson is considering filing a weapons charge and second DUI charge against Ruggs based on the serious arm injuries that his passenger Kiara Je’nai Kilgo-Washington, 22, of Las Vegas.
“This is a very tragic and sad day in this community,” Wolfson told reporters after the hearing. “A woman lost her life. Another person perhaps lost his career, perhaps (is) going to prison. This was a very, very ugly day, yesterday morning.”
Ruggs was released by the Raiders late on Tuesday.