Ruggs faces sentencing this week in deadly crash

Former Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs is scheduled to be sentenced for a fatal drunk driving crash on Wednesday, when a Las Vegas judge could order him to serve three to 10 years in prison.

Ruggs pleaded guilty to a felony count of DUI resulting in death and a misdemeanor charge of vehicular manslaughter for the crash that killed 23-year-old Tina Tintor on Nov. 2, 2021.

In court documents filed last week for the sentencing hearing, Ruggs’ attorneys revealed that he received mental health treatment for a PTSD diagnosis six months after the fatal DUI crash. Attorneys also wrote in the documents that the judge should impose the agreed-upon sentence of up to a decade in prison, with the possibility of parole after three years.

“Mr. Ruggs has pled guilty and has accepted responsibility for his conduct and there is nothing in Mr. Ruggs’ background that could have predicted this tragic event,” Ruggs’ attorneys, David Chesnoff and Richard Schonfeld, wrote in the court documents.

Ruggs underwent in-patient mental health treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder in California in May 2022, according to the court filings.

Attorneys wrote in the document that since the crash, Ruggs has “made positive changes in his life, has accepted responsibility, and has sincere remorse.”

Court records show that three of Tintor’s relatives are expected to speak during the sentencing hearing, when the victim’s family members are allowed to give statements before the judge announces a sentence.

District Judge Jennifer Schwartz will have the final say on the sentence, but Ruggs has the ability to withdraw his guilty plea if the judge does not abide by the sentencing agreement.

Ruggs is accused of driving his Chevrolet Corvette Stingray up to 156 mph down a residential street seconds before slamming into the back of Tintor’s 2013 Toyota RAV4. Her car burst into flames, trapping her inside and killing Tintor and her dog.

Prosecutors have said that after the crash, Ruggs’ blood alcohol level was 0.16 percent, twice the legal limit for drivers in Nevada.

He initially faced charges of DUI resulting in death, DUI resulting in substantial bodily harm, two counts of reckless driving resulting in death or substantial bodily harm and possession of a firearm while under the influence.

There was a chance the DUI charge against Ruggs was going to be dismissed if prosecutors had not reached a plea deal, the Clark County district attorney’s office said in a statement released in May. The dispute stemmed from the search warrant in the case that allowed Las Vegas police to draw Ruggs’ blood at a hospital following the crash.

Defense attorneys have tried to exclude the results of Ruggs’ blood alcohol test from evidence, arguing that police did not have probable cause to ask a judge to sign the warrant.

Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.