Former Carolina Panthers wide receiver Rae Carruth was released from prison Monday morning.
Carruth, 44, left the Sampson Correctional Institution in Clinton, North Carolina, at 8 a.m. without speaking to reporters gathered near the exit.
Carruth begins a nine-month post-release program as part of his sentence for plotting the Nov. 16, 1999, shooting of his pregnant girlfriend, Cherica Adams, who died one month later.
Carruth's son, Chancellor Adams, survived in Adams' womb but the loss of oxygen and blood caused brain damage. Saundra Adams, Cherica's mother, has raised her grandson since his birth.
During the release program, Carruth is not permitted to leave the state without permission.
The 1997 first-round pick was an active NFL player when charges were brought in the Adams case.