Rae Carruth was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder in 2001, after he orchestrated the shooting of his pregnant girlfriend Cherica Adams in 1999.
Mecklenburg County SheriffRae Carruth’s mugshot.
By the late 1990s, Rae Carruth was seen as a rising NFL star. A first-round draft pick in 1997 — and expected to have a long and lucrative career — he had already begun making his mark on the field with the Carolina Panthers when everything changed on a November night in 1999.
Then, Carruth’s heavily pregnant girlfriend, Cherica Adams, was shot and killed in a cold-blooded attack that prosecutors said Carruth helped orchestrate. Their son survived, but with lifelong disabilities.
Though Carruth has long claimed innocence, he was found guilty of conspiracy to commit murder, and spent almost two decades behind bars.
This is the story of Rae Carruth and the murder of Cherica Adams.
Rae Carruth’s Start As A Promising NFL Player
Born Rae Lamar Wiggins on Jan. 20, 1974, Rae Carruth grew up in Sacramento, California. From a young age, Carruth was a promising athlete. He even earned a football scholarship to the University of Colorado, where he soon developed into a top wide receiver.
University of ColoradoRae Carruth at the University of Colorado.
In four seasons, Carruth had 135 receptions for 2,540 yards and scored 11 touchdowns. He was recognized for his ability and, in 1997, the National Football League drafted him in the first round. The Carolina Panthers selected Carruth 27th overall, and he signed a multi-million dollar contract.
His future in football appeared secure, and Carruth’s rookie season showed early promise. He started in 14 games, recorded 44 receptions for 545 yards, and scored four touchdowns. But in 1998, a broken foot cut his season short. Though he returned the next year, his performance declined.
At the same time, Rae Carruth’s personal life had grown more complicated. He faced child support disputes from a previous relationship and was involved in an on-and-off relationship with Cherica Adams, a real estate agent and part-time exotic dancer in North Carolina. By late 1999, Adams was eight months pregnant with Carruth’s child.
According to the Charlotte Observer, Carruth had asked Adams if she would abort the child. He was already paying $3,000 a month in child support, and purportedly didn’t want to support another child — especially with his football career lagging. But Adams refused.
The Night Cherica Adams Was Shot
On Nov. 16, 1999, Rae Carruth and Cherica Adams went to see a movie. They took separate cars home and, as Adams drove along, Carruth suddenly stopped in front of her, blocking her. Then, a gunman pulled up beside her — and fired five shots straight into the car.
Carruth then sped off. Adams had been hit four times, but she was still alive and conscious, and she managed to call 911.
Saundra AdamsCherica Adams was eight months pregnant when she was shot and killed.
“I was following my baby’s daddy, Rae Carruth, the football player,” Adams told the 911 dispatcher, as reported by The New York Times. “He slowed down. And a car pulled up beside me…[Carruth] just left. I think he did it. I don’t know what to think.”
Adams was rushed to the hospital, where doctors were able to deliver her baby. Deprived of oxygen for 70 minutes, the baby boy, Chancellor, was born with permanent brain damage and cerebral palsy. Though Adams succumbed to her wounds, she was able to write a note for investigators, in which she repeated what she had told the 911 dispatcher.
“He was driving in front of me and stopped in the road,” Adams wrote. “And a car pulled up beside me, and he blocked the front and never came back.”
The Dramatic Trial Of Rae Carruth
After being shot, Cherica Adams fell into a coma and died on Dec. 14, 1999, at the age of 24. Rae Carruth fled, but was arrested the next day in Tennessee, hiding in the trunk of a car. The Carolina Panthers released him, and the NFL suspended him indefinitely. Meanwhile, Carruth faced charges of murder.
However, he had not fired the fatal bullet. The killer was identified as Van Brett Watkins. But Watkins and Carruth would tell very different stories about what had happened that night.
According to Carruth, Watkins had retaliated against him after Carruth backed out of a drug deal. Carruth’s lawyer argued in court that Carruth had promised to lend Watkins money, then changed his mind. They claimed that Watkins had then shot Adams in revenge, and that Carruth had fled the scene out of fear that he would be next.
Court TVVan Brett Watkins Sr. appears in court after admitting to his role as the gunman in the 1999 shooting that killed Cherica Adams.
But Watkins vehemently disagreed. He stated that Carruth had hired him as a hitman to kill Adams. According to the Charlotte Observer, Carruth initially hoped that Watkins could hurt Adams badly enough to cause her to miscarry their baby.
“So he said, ‘How much would it take to beat up a girl and make her abort her baby?'” Watkins recalled. “I said, ‘I don’t beat up no girls. I kill people.'”
Watkins claimed that Carruth then asked: “How much would you charge?”
In court, Watkins further testified: “He hired me as a hit man. He hired me to kill Cherica Adams and the baby… I couldn’t bring myself to kill the baby. I shot at the top [of the car], not through the door.”
In the end, Watkins was found guilty of murdering Cherica Adams and sentenced to 40 years in prison. But Rae Carruth didn’t get off scot-free. He was found guilty of conspiring to commit murder, and using an instrument to destroy an unborn child. The former NFL star was sentenced to 18 years to 24 years in prison.
His son, Chancellor, has been raised by Adams’ mother.
Rae Carruth’s Life After Prison
After almost 19 years in the North Carolina prison system, Rae Carruth was released on Oct. 22, 2018. He has remained largely out of the public eye and said little about his case. However, he agreed to a rare interview with WBTV shortly before leaving jail in which he expressed feelings of remorse.
Rae CarruthA photo of Rae Carruth in prison, where he worked as a barber.
“I feel like if I did it in the open, it would put an end to the lies. If I say publicly, ‘Ms. Adams [Cherica’s mother] I apologize, Ms. Adams, I take responsibility for what happened,’ that she can no longer get on television and do an interview and say Rae has never apologized to me,” Carruth said.
He continued: “I’m apologizing for the loss of her daughter. I’m apologizing for the impairment of my son. I feel responsible for everything that happened. And I just want her to know that truly I am sorry for everything. If I could change anything, I’d change the whole situation. His mother would still be here and I wouldn’t be where I’m at. So that’s what I’d want to change. I want the incident to never have happened at all.”
Rae Carruth, however, maintains his innocence.
After reading about Rae Carruth, the NFL player found guilty of conspiring to murder his pregnant girlfriend, read about Aaron Hernandez, the NFL star found guilty of murder. Then, discover the harrowing story of Olympic gold medalist, Oscar Pistorius, who shot his girlfriend to death.
