Attorney for one of suspects in Trenary case said others may be involved
The two men accused in the fatal shooting of Greater Memphis Chamber president and CEO Phil Trenary will be back in court Monday when their attorneys will seek to get a preliminary hearing date set in the case.
Quandarius Richardson, 18, and McKinney Wright Jr., 22, remain in jail on no bond after they were charged with first-degree murder in Trenary’s slaying. Wright’s cousin, 16-year-old Ranisha Wright, has also been charged in the homicide and she will be back in Juvenile Court next month to see if she will be charged as an adult in the death of the well-known business and civic leader.
Trenary, 64, was walking alone from a Chamber event on Sept. 27 when he was approached by one of the suspects in the 500 block of Front Street and shot in the back of the head, according to an arrest affidavit. The suspects fled in a stolen white pickup truck, police said.
The three suspects were arrested on Sept. 29 and told police they were looking for people to possibly rob in the Downtown neighborhood, according to their affidavits.
Richardson and McKinney Wright appeared in General Sessions Court Thursday where their case was reset for Monday.
Richardson’s attorney, Art Horne, said after Thursday’s brief court appearance that based on the information he has received he believes others may be involved in the death of Trenary, even though Memphis police said recently that no other arrests are expected in the case.
Initially, Memphis police said that bystanders said a man with dreadlocks was one of the men who shot Trenary and was driving the stolen Ford F-150 truck, but the suspects charged do not have dreadlocks.
“I am still following up on potentially other people being involved, but from my investigation I think there is a lot more to this case,” Horne said. “We still have to work. I’ve been hired to do a job and I am going to do my job and continue to work.
“We’ve had cases in the past where we have had to go out and find the perpetrators and present those to the DA’s office and present them to the jury," Horne said. "I feel like this may be one of those cases. I would hope the community wouldn’t rush to judgment on these young men and young lady involved in this case. We are going to keep working and keep investigating.”
Horne said the preliminary hearing could be held before the holidays and during this hearing the prosecutors will present witnesses to prove there is probable cause in the case to send it to the grand jury for possible indictments.
“People get themselves caught up in a situation. He is caught up in a situation and he has hired me to get him out of that situation," Horne said. "It is going to take some time. I just preach patience and tell him that he is going to have to be patient.”
McKinney Wright is being represented by attorney Bill Massey. Horne said it is too early to talk about any collaboration on the case with Massey.
Topics
Homicides Phil Trenary shootingsYolanda Jones
Yolanda Jones covers criminal justice issues and general assignment news for The Daily Memphian. She previously was a reporter at The Commercial Appeal.
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