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Former first-round draft pick Henry Ruggs was on a special release from prison on Tuesday to attend at Hope for Prisoners event in Las Vegas, just a few miles away from where he killed a woman while driving drunk at 156 mph.
Ruggs was the 12th overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft, but just days after his 20th NFL game, he killed Tina Tintor and her dog in the fiery crash.
Ruggs was sentenced to 3-10 years in prison in August 2023, with the possibility of parole in August 2026.
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Former Raiders player Henry Ruggs, center, waits in court for a hearing at the Regional Justice Center in Las Vegas Tuesday, May 2, 2023. Attorneys for Ruggs announced a plea agreement on felony DUI charges in connection with a deadly crash in 2021. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Nearly four years after the fateful night, though, Ruggs offered an apology to Tintor’s family at the event.
“One, I wish I could turn back the hands of time,” he said at the event, recorded in a video taken by the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “I would love for them to meet the real Henry Ruggs and not the one that was escaping from something. I sincerely apologize for not only being a part of that situation, but the fact my face is always in the news, it’s always in the newspaper. So they have to constantly be reminded of the situation, be reminded of me.”
Ruggs apologized at his sentencing hearing, adding that his behavior was “not a true reflection” of who he is.
Former Las Vegas Raiders player Henry Ruggs, middle, appears in court with his attorneys Michael Schonfeld, left, and David Chesnoff at the Regional Justice Center in Las Vegas on Wednesday, May 10, 2023. (K.M. Cannon/Las Vegas Review-Journal/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
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He pleaded guilty to felony DUI causing death and misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. One of his former Raiders teammates, Josh Jacobs, said he’s been training for a potential NFL return — he will be 27 when he has the opportunity to be up for parole.
Ruggs, who was the Raiders’ first-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft, was driving 156 mph in his Corvette, police say, when he crashed into Tintor’s Toyota RAV4. Her gas tank ruptured due to the crash, and it resulted in her death as well as the death of her golden retriever, Max.
When taken to the hospital for his own injuries, Ruggs’ blood-alcohol content measured at 0.161, which is twice the legal limit in Nevada.
FILE – Las Vegas Raiders wide receiver Henry Ruggs III in action against the Denver Broncos during an NFL football game, Oct. 17, 2021, in Denver. Police in Las Vegas said Ruggs is facing a driving under the influence charge after a fiery vehicle crash early Tuesday, Nov. 2, 2021, that left a woman dead and Ruggs and his female passenger injured. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey, File)
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Kiara Je’nai Kilgo-Washington, who was also in Ruggs’ Corvette at the time of the crash, suffered injuries as well. The two had been spotted drinking at a nearby TopGolf, with the crash occurring at 3:39 a.m. local time.
Fox News’ Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.
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