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Carruth arraigned Judge doubles bond to $3 million
Posted: Saturday November 27, 1999 02:12 PM
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- A district judge doubled Carolina Panthers wide receiver Rae Carruth's bond hours after the player and two other men were arraigned on charges they planned and carried out the drive-by shooting of Carruth's pregnant girlfriend. Mecklenburg County District Judge C. Jerome Leonard set bond Friday at $1.5 million for each of the three defendants. Later in the evening, Leonard doubled Carruth's bond to $3 million -- $1 million for each charge against him. Leonard declined to comment on why he increased the bond. Carruth, 25, the Panthers' first-round draft choice in 1997, and William Watkins, 44, of Charlotte, were arrested Thursday and charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, attempted murder and shooting into an occupied vehicle. Michael Kennedy, 24, of Pineville, was arrested Friday morning on the same charges. All three remained in jail Friday night. Authorities have said Charlotte-Mecklenburg police believe up to four people were involved in the Nov. 16 attack on Cherica Adams, shot four times from a passing vehicle as she drove down a Charlotte street. Investigators would not comment Friday on whether they thought they were close to making another arrest. Adams, 24, and her baby boy, delivered 10 weeks prematurely by emergency Caesarean section after the shooting, remained in critical condition Friday at Carolinas Medical Center. Carruth, who police say is the baby's father, did not attend Friday's arraignment, but appeared on a closed-circuit video feed from the county jail across the street, a standard practice for many felony defendants. After prosecutors asked Leonard to set a substantial bond, defense attorney Leonard Kornberg argued that such a move was unnecessary. He said Carruth had never been arrested before, was a recognized athlete and had willingly stayed close to his Charlotte home since the shooting. "I think that shows that if he had any intent to flee, he would have done so already," Kornberg said. Carruth is in the third year of a four-year, $3.7 million contract that calls for him to get a 1999 salary of $652,500, or $38,382 in each of the 17 weeks that NFL players are paid during the season. Carruth is likely to remain on what amounts to a paid leave from the Panthers until his case is resolved. Leonard scheduled a bond-reduction hearing for Dec. 1 in case Carruth is unable to raise the money needed to get out of jail. A probable-cause hearing was scheduled for Dec. 15. Outside the courtroom, Kornberg said Carruth welcomes a chance to defend himself. "Obviously he's going to plead not guilty," Kornberg said. "The process is ongoing. Everyone keep an open mind. It's still early in the process." Kornberg said he knew little about the relationship between Carruth and the other defendants, and investigators would not comment on the matter other than to say the three are acquaintances. A woman staying with Watkins at an extended-stay hotel in Charlotte told The Charlotte Observer that Watkins had done some car detail work for Carruth. Records show Watkins has no previous arrest history in Mecklenburg County, but Kennedy has a number of prior charges, including assault with a deadly weapon in 1994. The records do not show any convictions for Kennedy. Carruth, listed on police documents as "Rae Lamar Theotis Wiggins, aka Rae Theotis Carruth," also faces action from the NFL. League rules require any player charged with a violent crime to undergo clinical evaluation and possibly counseling as well. Carruth, the 27th overall selection in the 1997 draft after a standout career at Colorado, led all NFL rookie receivers with 44 receptions for 545 yards but has been slowed by injuries the past two years.
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