A defendant accused in the killing of the Greater Memphis Chamber CEO Phil Trenary pleaded guilty Monday, Dec. 4, to second-degree murder. 

McKinney Wright, 27, made the plea in Shelby County Criminal Court Division 8 Judge Chris Craft’s courtroom.

He will serve 25 years at the Tennessee Department of Corrections with no parole. The time he has served in jail will count toward his sentence. 

Trial for man accused of killing former Chamber CEO delayed again

“I firmly believe that if this case would have been tried three years ago and swiftly, we would have been in a very different position,” Trenary’s daughter, Brittney Rowe, told The Daily Memphian.

“So I don’t think there’s ever a great resolution in this,” she said. “It’s the lesser of a bunch of very difficult choices. But here we are.”

In a victim impact statement she read during the plea hearing, Rowe told Wright that time is always in favor of the defendant. 

“It’s been five years, two months and one week since my dad was murdered,” Rowe said. “During that time, I’ve searched for clarity and definition around justice and fairness. Before Sept. 27, 2018, I thought I knew what justice was. I’ve since had to adjust my definition of that.”

Wright was indicted June 3, 2019, on charges of first-degree murder and criminal attempt of especially aggravated robbery.

Trials separated for two suspects accused in Phil Trenary killing

The plea comes after weeks of motion hearings preparing for Wright’s trial, which was delayed for the third time Thursday. The deal was made a year after the original trial date of Dec. 5, 2022.

If the trial had gone forward, the judge would have heard testimony from experts, including Dr. Megan Avery, a local independent clinical and forensic psychologist. Avery said in a hearing on Thursday, Nov. 30, that Wright’s intellectual disability made him more easily manipulated by authority figures such as police officers.

Avery said Thursday Wright’s intellectual problems likely stemmed from birth and pointed to records that show his mother used drugs and alcohol when she was pregnant with him. He was born prematurely and was not properly fed or cared for, she said. 

The defense team for Wright — Katherine Oberembt and Jason Ballenger — has maintained Wright was coerced into confessing to police his role in the shooting. 

Craft previously suggested he believed Wright was not coerced during a hearing Nov. 15 when he heard testimony from Lt. Ma’Hajj Abdul-Baaqee, who interviewed Wright after he was arrested.

In February 2022, Craft determined Wright was fit to stand trial after he heard testimony from psychologists that said, even though Wright has an IQ of 63, he did not lack the mental capacity to understand the charges brought against him for Trenary’s killing or his Miranda rights. 

Southern Airways dedicates aircraft to Phil Trenary

‘I want him to be remembered as the champion of the city’

During her impact statement, Rowe, addressing Wright directly, said, “I do have sympathy for you. But the unfairness in your life unequivocally doesn’t excuse you for taking my dad’s life.”

She also thanked Craft and the three-person prosecution team of Karen Cook, José F. León and Leslie Byrd for their work on the case. 

“For the court system and the DA’s office who often get put under scrutiny and a negative light, I want to put a spotlight on those four people because they are doing good work,” Rowe said. 

In his victim impact statement to Wright, Pearce Trenary, Phil Trenary’s son, called his father his “north star” and best friend.

Rowe said her dad was an “incredible advocate” for the entire city. 

Trenary recognized for ‘promoting racial harmony’

On Thursday, Dec. 7, a street sign unveiling ceremony will be held in Trenary’s honor. A section of Main Street between Madison and Court avenues has been renamed Phil Trenary Way.

“I want him to be remembered as the champion of the city,” Rowe told The Daily Memphian. “I just want him to continue to be remembered in the light that we knew him.”

The trials for Wright and his co-defendant, Quandarius Richardson, were separated Oct. 5. A trial date for Richardson has not yet been set.