The former Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III has been sentenced to between three and 10 years in jail after he caused a car crash that killed a woman in November 2021.
Ruggs had been driving at speeds up to 156 mph shortly before he collided with a vehicle containing 23-year-old Tina Tintor and her pet dog. Tintor and her dog were killed after their car burst into flames. Blood samples taken after the crash showed that Ruggs had a blood-alcohol level of 0.16% — twice the legal limit in Nevada. The speed limit in the area of the crash was 45 mph. The Raiders cut the wide receiver the day after the crash, in which he suffered minor injuries.
According to investigators, Ruggs spent several hours drinking with friends at a sports entertainment site and golfing venue, and may have been at a friend’s home for several more hours before he and Kiara Je’nai Kilgo-Washington, his fiancee and mother of his daughter, headed home. Tintor, who was described in court as the anchor of her family, had been due to pick up her parents from work on the day of the crash.
“To the parents and family of Ms Tintor, I sincerely apologize for the pain and suffering,” Ruggs said in a statement he read at his sentencing on Wednesday.
“I have no excuses,” Ruggs said, citing pain the case has caused his family, teammates and Tintor’s family. Ruggs said that after prison, he intends to counsel others “about the dangers of driving at unsafe speed and driving and drinking.”
The 24-year-old had pled guilty to one count of DUI resulting in death and one count of misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter in a May hearing. He has been under house arrest since the crash after he posted a $150,000 bond. He could be eligible for parole in three years.
“We pray that Henry Ruggs is blessed with the opportunity to be able watch his beautiful daughter grow into the amazing woman she can be,” Mirjana Komazec, Tintor’s mother, said in a statement read by a family member in court. “And we pray that this terrible accident inspires positive change in the world. We pray that we all take away the importance of looking out for one another, remembering everyone we meet is another human’s loved one.”
Ruggs was drafted by the Raiders in 2020. He signed a four-year rookie contract reported to be worth more than $16m and had been emerging as a star NFL player before the crash.
