The former Las Vegas Raider wide receiver Henry Ruggs III has been formally charged with four felonies and a misdemeanor stemming from a car crash last week that left a 23-year-old woman dead.
Prosecutors in Las Vegas say that Ruggs had a blood-alcohol content that was twice Nevada's legal limit when he slammed into Tina O. Tintor at 156 mph. Tintor was killed in the crash, as was her dog. Kiara Je'nai Kilgo-Washington, Ruggs' girlfriend, was in the car with him and experienced a serious arm injury requiring surgery.
On Wednesday, prosecutors charged Ruggs with two counts of driving under the influence causing death or substantial harm and two counts of reckless driving. Ruggs, 22, has also been charged with a misdemeanor for the possession of a gun under the influence of alcohol.
Steve Wolfson, the Clark County District Attorney, said the charges could result in as much as 50 years in prison for Ruggs.
Ruggs was not in court for the hearing. His attorney, David Chesnoff, was not immediately available to respond to a request for comment from NPR. But speaking to reporters after the hearing he said it was important to not "prejudge" the case.
"I have been doing this for 40 years, and I can tell each and every one of you that I have had multiple experiences where the facts that were presented at the outset of the case turned out not to be the facts," Chesnoff said.
The collision occurred on Nov. 2 when police received reports at 3:39 a.m. local time of a crash involving a Chevrolet Corvette and the Toyota Rav4 that Tintor was traveling in. When they arrived on the scene, the Toyota was on fire. First responders found Tintor dead inside the car.
Ruggs was taken to a nearby hospital for "non-life threatening injuries." After posting a $150,000 bail, he was placed on house arrest, where he is required to abstain from drugs and alcohol and is prohibited from driving under his bail conditions, according to court records.
The former first-round draft pick out of the University of Alabama has also been released by the Raiders.
Tien Le is an intern on NPR's News Desk.
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