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Bethesda resident Joshua Wright was sentenced on Wednesday, Dec. 14 to life in prison with all but 40 years suspended for the murder of Lawrence Wilson, Jr., 33, on Dec. 19, 2021, in Montgomery County.
Wright pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in July, according to prosecutors.
According to investigators, officers responded to a call on the day of the fatal stabbing of a death of a man - later identified as Wilson - at Target on Wisconsin Avenue. Wright and a second teen, Antonio Lawrence, and a third teen, Blaise Uchemadu, were later identified as suspects.
Wright was ordered by Judge Karla Smith to be admitted to the Patuxent Youthful Offenders Program while incarcerated. He will also be placed on five years of supervised probation upon his release.
The Patuxent Institution opened in 1955 "with the mission to ensure public safety through the psychotherapeutic treatment of individuals who demonstrated persistent antisocial and criminal behavior," officials said.
"The mission has evolved over the years, but the one constant has been Patuxent’s role as a hub for treatment services for the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services."
Lawrence is scheduled to go to trial on Feb. 6, 2023, when he will be tried for charges that include first-degree murder, armed robbery, and conspiracy to commit armed robbery.
Murder charges against Uchemadu were ultimately dropped.
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