Wright takes plea

By Jessica Coleman

Contributing Writer

    Quincy Mohammed Wright, the man convicted of murder in the November 2017 shooting death of Edna man James Barrios, saw his sentence significantly reduced after an appeal ended in a plea deal. Wright pleaded guilty to Manslaughter and Unlawful Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, both second-degree felonies, in exchange for two 15-year sentences, to run concurrently.

    Wright appealed his 2019 conviction and resulting 99-year sentence on the grounds that the court denied requests by the defense to include information about self-defense in the jury charge, then denied the jury’s request for more information regarding self-defense. It also stated that the court erroneously denied an evidentiary hearing and a new trial.

    According to the appeal, during the original trial the jury sent a note to the court during deliberations which read, “We would like clarification on what constitutes self-defense? We would like the Texas State Law please.”

    The document goes on to say that despite objections from Wright, the court responded “I have already ruled that self defense does not apply in this case. That is why self-defense was not in my charge. You are not to consider self-defense in your deliberation.”

    In addition to serving 15 years in the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division, Wright waived his right to appeal, and agreed to not contact several relatives of James Barrios.