Anthony Wright Featured on WHYY’s Radio Times

On Wednesday, August 31st, Anthony Wright and Schnader’s Rebecca Lacher joined Marissa Bluestine, legal director of the Pennsylvania Innocence Project, and Tyrone Werts, a public relations consultant at Temple University’s Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program, as guests on WHYY’s Radio Times with Marty Moss-Coane.

Mr. Wright spent 25 years in prison for crimes he did not commit, and was exonerated last week by a Philadelphia jury. Schnader’s Sam Silver and Rebecca Lacher, along with Peter Neufeld and Nina Morrison of the Innocence Project, represented Mr. Wright.

In the hour-long program, Mr. Wright remarked on his long road to freedom and how he is not bitter despite a quarter century behind bars. Ms. Lacher and Mr. Werts praised Tony for his positivity and resilience. The group also discussed how Pennsylvania is one of 20 states without a law to compensate exonerated defendants. Ms. Bluestine explained that a bill to provide this compensation is currently pending in the General Assembly. The Project plans to bring exonerees, including Mr. Wright, to Harrisburg to testify in support of the bill. Mr. Werts, who served 36 years in prison before Governor Rendell commuted his life sentence in 2010, discussed the struggles of re-entry. When asked what she learned from working on the case, Ms. Lacher pointed to Mr. Wright’s positivity and courage throughout his incarceration and retrial said the case “will probably be the highlight of my legal career.”

Please click here to listen to the story on WHYY’s website. You can also visit the Innocence Project’s blog to write to Mr. Wright or support his transition to civilian life at this donation site.