Source: The Sporting News / Getty
Sherra Wright, the ex-wife of the late Lorenzen Wright, won’t be granted release from her 30-year prison sentence, officials from the Tennesse Board of Parole revealed on May 23.
The board unanimously voted to deny Wright’s request for release due to the seriousness of her offense. In 2019, Wright confessed to facilitating her ex-husband’s highly publicized murder.
The body of 12-year-NBA veteran Lorenzen Wright was found in a swampy field in East Memphis on July 28, 2010. Investigators discovered multiple gunshot wounds on the athlete’s body just six days after he was reported missing. The Memphis native played in the NBA for 13 seasons before he retired in 2009.
Wright, who appeared before the parole board on May 11, claimed that she had made progress since planning the horrific murder. She told officials that she was doing well in the classes that she takes from prison. She also claimed that she was a role model for other inmates.
Two of her children provided statements rallying for her release.
According to the Associated Press, Wright was able to receive the hearing based on a “safety valve” date which is the earliest possible release date for some inmates under an executive order regarding prison overcrowding.”
“To have released this defendant after she has served less than five years of a 30-year sentence for murder conspiracy would have diminished respect for the law by declaring a policy of tolerance for violent criminal behavior,” they added.
Lorenzen and Wright endured a rocky divorce before his death
Lorenzen was allegedly forced to pay $26,000 per month in child support for his children and ex-wife after the divorce settled. Wright claimed that he stopped making payments in November 2010, which pushed her into a financial rut.
“I just feel like Sherra Wright is being placed in a bad light,” Wright’s attorney previously said. “She does not deserve it at all. She’s been an incredible mother and woman. And she’s done her best to shield her children from financial difficulties.”
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