almost the same story he had told earlier
to police. He had looked first in the
wardrobe in Carol Specht’s bedroom and
thought of getting some shoes. “Then
I realised that if the woman reported
some shoes stolen I would be found out
because of my shoe fetish.” After that he
began to look for money. He took some
photos and a driver’s licence from the
woman’s purse.
He was leaving but on his way out
he saw another room and opened the
door. He saw a girl in bed. He asked
her who she was, and she told him her
name. Wright said that he forced her at
knifepoint into her mother’s bedroom,
but he was unsuccessful in a rape
attempt.
M
any thousands of words spill all
over the internet in coverage of the
various appeals which lawyers for Wright
mounted over some 20 years. They are
detailed, intricate and cover fine points of
law. One has to wonder if Wright had any
idea what was going on in his name while
he shuffled his way around the prison
yard and stared at the ceiling of his small
cell.
No one had any complaint about
the fact that the jury convicted him of
murder and attempted murder, although
they might have added a “by reason
of insanity” tag to the end of their
guilty finding. Appeals centred on the
pronouncement of the death penalty.
This is what it boiled down to – and,
no, you won’t need a top degree in US
criminal law to follow the basic point by
the final appeal judges in 2002.
County Circuit Judge Paul Komada
summing-up, the appeal against the
death penalty would have fallen.
The appeal judges were quite clear
that they did not look at the question of
how the sentencing court interpreted
evidence offered by Wright. But they
were concerned at the sentencing court’s
decision not to examine such evidence at
all – and make no bones about it. Judge
Komada’s error was in announcing it in
open court. In other words, if he hadn’t
made a point of going on about it, he
would not have been found to have erred.
Wright was returned to Coles County
in May 2004, for a resentence hearing.
He showed no reaction as his two-hour
confession, taped more than 20 years
earlier, was played in court. More than
two dozen members of Carol’s family
and friends were in attendance and they
lowered their heads, some fighting tears.
Circuit Judge Dale Cini, as expected,
ordered a life sentence without the
possibility of parole.
Patrick Wright lived till May 5th, 2017,
when he was found unresponsive in his
cell at the Pontiac Correctional Center.
He was taken to the prison’s infirmary
and died there. Main cause of death was
bleeding from a vascular condition in
his stomach that caused blood vessels to
burst. He was also experiencing heart
failure and had emphysema.
Wright, loner and sicko, struggled
through nearly 40 wretched years before
he murdered Carol Specht, a staunch
campaigner against domestic violence,
and he endured another 34 miserable
years in prison afterwards.
Loved by no one; mourned by no
one...all those years earlier had expressed
sympathy with Wright, but said he
would not consider any mitigation
about his truly awful existence. “I can’t
feel anything but sympathy for Patrick
Wright, who wandered through a
wretched life from one institution to
another.”
But, he added, Carol Specht’s murder
and the knife attack on her daughter were
premeditated. “The victim was bound
and gagged, and her daughter was on her
knees begging for mercy,” Komada said.
“He has tasted blood, enjoyed it and is
likely to return for more if society were
to allow it. He could easily have made
his escape but he chose to kill those who
could have identified him.”
Well, all that was fair enough. Judge
Komada had not been required to look
closely at or interpret any evidence of
possible mitigation. But he had been in
error in stating clearly that he would not
even consider it. Had he not referred
to the firm stance he was taking in hisMattoon police department at
the time of the murderT
he returning heroes had been forgotten by their country. Men who
had risked life and limb in the First World War trenches had to
ight again – this time for their livelihoods, families, and a place in
society. Riles were replaced with razors, and bayonets with knives. This
time, the enemy was society itself, more often than not represented by
the police force. Money would be made, blood would be shed and lives
would be lost. Shefield was a city at war with itself, as opposing gangs
battled daily for control of the inner-city streets...
For a chance to win a paperback copy of Shefield’s Most Notorious Gangs
(Pen & Sword History; ISBN 978-1-526-70296-8; £12.99) by Ben W. Johnson,
answer this question:The first correct answer out of the hat after the closing date of September 26th will win. Send your answer,
with your name and address, to MMF 109 Competition, PO Box 735, London SE26 5NQ, or
email [email protected] with “MMF 109 Competition” in the subject line,
and including your full postal address. The answer and winner will be announced in MMF 110. Good luck!
The winner of the competition in MMF 108, with the answer Boston, is Mrs. Ann Hobbs from
Doncaster. Congratulations! Your prize – a hardback copy of Black Dahlia Red Rose – will be with you
soon!MMF 109 COMPETITION
SHEFFIELD’S MOST NOTORIOUS GANGSWINWINShefield is commonly known as the ----- City?
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