 |
 |   |
|
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Multimedia Central Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities Work in Sports
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE |  |
Carruth makes appearance in court Former Panther waives right to court-appointed attorney
Posted: Monday January 10, 2000 07:33 PM
CHARLOTTE (AP) -- Former NFL player Rae Carruth waived his right to a court-appointed attorney Monday at a hearing on a charge he violated a state anti-abortion law by allegedly trying to kill his girlfriend's unborn child. Carruth, who already has hired two lawyers, also told Mecklenburg County District Judge Jerome Leonard he understood the charge during the brief closed-circuit television appearance. Leonard scheduled another court appearance Feb. 8. Carruth's mother, Theodry Carruth, declined to comment as she left the courtroom. Carruth, 25, remains in the county jail without bond on murder and conspiracy charges for the Nov. 16 drive-by shooting of Cherica Adams, 24, who soon afterward gave premature birth to Chancellor Adams, Carruth's son. Adams died of her wounds Dec. 14. Chancellor has steadily improved and no longer is hospitalized. The Mecklenburg County grand jury last week indicted the former Carolina Panthers wide receiver and three other men on murder and conspiracy charges in Cherica Adams' death and for violating the anti-abortion law. The law says it is illegal to use drugs or "any instrument" with the intent of destroying an unborn child after the first 20 weeks of a mother's pregnancy, unless the pregnancy must be terminated to spare the mother's life. Adams was shot four times as she drove through south Charlotte. Prosecutors have said Carruth may have been driving a vehicle ahead of Adams, when a vehicle pulled alongside her and someone opened fire. Carruth is accused of masterminding the slaying. He and codefendants William Watkins, 44; Michael Kennedy, 24; and Stanley Abraham Jr., 19, all are being held without bond. Prosecutors have said they intend to seek the death penalty against the four. Carruth, drafted by the Carolina Panthers out of Colorado in 1997, was waived by the team and suspended indefinitely by the NFL. He is the first active NFL player to be charged with murder. DNA test results established Carruth as Chancellor Adams' father. The child's grandmother, Saundra Adams, has temporary custody of the child.
| ||||||||||||||||||||
