CHARLOTTE N.C. (Court TV)— Rae Carruth burst into tears when he heard the mother of his son had died, a defense witness testified Monday morning.

The football player, already charged with masterminding Cherica Adams' shooting, believed his best defense died with her, according to ex-girlfriend and longtime friend Dawnyle Willard.

"He was saying how when Cherica died, his hope died because Cherica knew Rae didn't have this done to her," Willard, a statuesque professional dancer in a conservative taupe suit, told jurors.

She was the latest in a string of ex-girlfriends to testify in the former pro football player's seven-week murder trial. The 26-year-old faces the death penalty for allegedly contracting the drive-by shooting of Adams in November 1999 in a bid to avoid paying child support. Then seven months pregnant, Adams delivered a healthy son, Chancellor, but died from her injuries four weeks later.

Willard took the stand as part of a surrebuttal case the defense hopes will brunt devastating testimony by another ex-girlfriend Friday. Amber Turner told jurors that Carruth forced her to get an abortion by threatening physical violence and once discussed having a former girlfriend and his own son killed.

Willard and other witnesses called Monday managed to burnish Carruth's reputation as a nice guy while attacking Turner as a woman scorned.

Starlita Walker, a previous defense witness whose young son was mentored by Carruth, resumed the stand and testified that Turner was angry when the football player rebuffed her attempt to rekindle their relationship while he was out on bail.

She recalled an evening in December 1999 when she and her son visited Carruth at his home. Both Turner and Carruth's current girlfriend, Tenisha Huckleberry, were there, and according to Walker, the friction between the women was palpable.

"It was tense in the house," Walker said, recalling how at one point both women insisted on squeezing themselves onto a couch with Carruth even though there were plenty of other seats in the living room.

Turner complained that Carruth was ignoring her, and Carruth, in turn, complained to Walker that he did not know how to handle Turner's advances.

"I told him to be polite, she was a guest in his house, but to feed her with a long spoon," Walker testified.

Eventually, Turner left Charlotte, angry at Carruth.

Willard corroborated that account, saying that Walker was still talking about Turner's jealous behavior when she arrived in town from Chicago.

"Star told me that she was acting like she was the chosen one, that he was supposed to be with her," Willard said.

Willard, a Denver native, recounted meeting Carruth in 1993 after a football game at the University of Colorado. She said the two dated for eight months in 1995, but ultimately decided just to be friends.

Carruth, she said, was excited about the birth of his child, especially because he had missed out on the upbringing of his 6-year-old son, Rae Jr. who lived with his ex-girlfriend in California. He wanted another chance, Willard said.

Her words echoed those of several friends who testified for the defense, but they were also nearly identical to talking points Carruth wrote to Turner from jail, according to the state, to influence her testimony.

Willard said that after Carruth was released on bail, she flew to Charlotte to "check up on my friend." She said he was very concerned about Adams' health and prayed for her recovery.

Those prayers, Willard said, "came straight from the heart, he wanted her to be okay."

On December 14, however, Adams died.

"When we heard the news on the radio that she had passed, the car got really quiet," Willard said, choking back tears. "We both started to cry. I'll never forget the look on his face because he thought she would be okay."

She testified that Carruth said he needed time to think, and she drove him to the home of his friend, Wendy Cole. It was Cole who drove Carruth to Tennessee, prompting a nationwide manhunt.

On cross-examination, Willard admitted that she did not tell police what she knew about Carruth's disappearance.

She added to the glowing character testimony the jury had already heard about the first-round draft pick.

"Rae wears his heart on his sleeve. And he doesn't know how to say no to anyone," she said.

Outside court, she said it was this generosity that may have led him to get involved with a drug dealer, admitted triggerman Van Brett Watkins. The defense claims that Carruth never used drugs, but briefly entertained the idea of financing a marijuana deal between his friend, Michael Kennedy, and Watkins. Carruth maintains he refused to go through with the transaction and Watkins killed Adams in a rage.

There was no testimony Monday afternoon, because two witnesses were en route to Charlotte and a third was ill. The three, expected to be the last witnesses, will take the stand Tuesday morning. Closing arguments could begin as soon as Wednesday morning.