MEMPHIS, Tenn. — From old pictures to memorabilia like a mug commemorating Lorenzen Wright’s 1996 draft night, Lorenzen’s cousin Trevino Vassar shared it with WREG during research for our podcast on Lorenzen’s life.
Vassar was six years younger than Lorenzen, but he said the two first cousins grew up like brothers telling WREG about their childhood in Oxford.
“It was very, very fun as a kid because we had an uncle that was handicapped, and he was always with us all the time as well,” Vassar said. “So we was called the three amigos.”
But the day after a jury convicted Billy Ray Turner for Lorenzen’s murder, it is a different type of reflection for Vassar. When asked how he felt about the conviction, he said he felt great.
“I was happy,” Vassar said. “My auntie got closure, our family got closure, and we really know what really happened that night when they murdered my cousin.”
Those details are what Vassar says stood out the most about Turner’s trial: Who was involved in the plot to kill Lorenzen and how no one stood up to stop it.
“The thing that I can’t get over with his loss is how we lost him, greed,” Vassar said. “Simple greed to kill him for money. I want to leave people with the fact that we were dealing with a despicable human being that was so greedy that she decided to kill the father of her children. And she plotted to do it and wasn’t satisfied until she got it done.”
Reverend Bill Adkins was Lorenzen’s neighbor and friend. He spoke at his funeral and followed all of the cases that put Lorenzen’s killer behind bars.
“Well I think everyone that watched that trial now believes that Sherra got off easily,” he said.
Sherra Wright pleaded guilty to facilitation of murder in 2019. Adkins said while we may never get the entire truth about Lorenzen’s death, it has been his mission over the last 12 years to share with people how Lorenzen lived his life.
“Lorenzen was killed twice, physically, once his character was assassinated then by Sherra, who spread the lies about him and drugs, things like that,” Reverend Adkins said. “I wanted to make sure that people knew the Lorenzen that I knew and would make sure that he could rest in peace. And I think we got that yesterday. Not completely, but we did at least get justice yesterday.”
Click here to read more on the Billy Ray Turner trial
