Fresno father partially cleared of son's death, bonded out of jail

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- William Wright III, the Fresno father accused of murdering his own son, is now partially cleared of any criminal wrongdoing.

"The jury came back unanimously not guilty on murder," Fresno County Superior Court Judge Michael Idiart said Monday. "The jury unanimously came back not guilty on a lesser offense of voluntary manslaughter."

The verdicts, explained in court on Monday, came down late Friday after nearly a week of jury deliberations.

Prosecutors had charged Wright III with one count of murder for the shooting death of his son, William Wright IV. He died in 2022 when prosecutors say his father pulled a gun during an argument.

"He elevated that tussling to a shooting," Deputy District Attorney Liz Owen said during her closing arguments last Monday.

At trial, the defense attorney pushed back, telling the jury Wright III was not a violent man. It was enough to convince jurors.

"The evidence pointed to no murder," defense attorney David Balakian said. "No intent to kill."

While the jury rejected the most serious charges against Wright III, he is not fully cleared. The jury was deadlocked on a less serious charge.

"I declared a mistrial Friday on the involuntary manslaughter," Judge Idiart said. "If there is a second trial or retrial, he can only be prosecuted on involuntary manslaughter."

Prosecutors will soon decide to dismiss the lesser charge entirely or request a second trial. But even if another jury convicts him, Wright III likely would not face any prison time.

He has been in jail for almost two years and would have enough credit to cover the potential maximum sentence.

Action News Legal Analyst Tony Capozzi says an involuntary manslaughter conviction would still have serious implications.

"This would clearly be a felony and prohibit this person from possessing a gun, ammunition, or anything of that sort," Capozzi said.

Wright III bonded out of jail on the lesser charge on Monday night.

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