No charges will be filed against shooter in fatal May incident

WILMINGTON, NC (WECT) - No charges will be filed against the person who fatally shot a Wilmington man in May.

According to a news release from the District Attorney's Office, the shooter acted in self-defense when he fired a shot at Fuquan Wright in the 1000 block of Martin Street. Wright later died from the gunshot wound.

"The Wilmington Police Department and my office have worked hand-in-hand throughout the investigation into the shooting of Mr. Wright," District Attorney Ben David said in the news release. "After reviewing all of the evidence and the applicable law, I have determined that the shooting of Mr. Wright was done in self-defense and was legally justified.

"Therefore, no charges will be filed against the shooter of Mr. Wright."

On May 28 around 2:30 p.m., a man called 911 saying he had been tased and fired his gun at the attacker.

Once on the scene, WPD officers interviewed the shooter, who said William Earl Baker III came to his house earlier in the day to buy a small amount of marijuana from the shooter.

Baker and Wright came back to the shooter's home, which the shooter found strange. Before opening the door, the shooter grabbed his pistol and after the shooter and Wright engaged in a brief conversation during which Wright asked for the shooter's phone number, Wright lunged forward and tased the shooter in the chest.

The shooter fired a shot at Wright, shattering a glass door, and Wright and Baker fled the scene.

During their investigation at the scene, WPD officers found a shell casing discharged from the shooter's gun and confirmed an injury consistent with a Taser on the shooter's upper chest.

Wright was brought to New Hanover Regional Medical Center at 2:33 p.m. by Demonta Mosely and Quoron Kea, who were both interviewed at the hospital and denied any knowledge of how Wright got shot or the circumstances surrounding the shooting. Wright was pronounced dead at 2:48 p.m.

Officers identified a single gunshot wound on the left side of Wright's chest and found pieces of glass on Wright's neck and clothing.

"North Carolina law gives the right for one person to take another's life under the law of self-defense in two circumstances: when a person reasonably believes that such force is necessary to prevent imminent death or great bodily harm to himself/herself or another; or, under the circumstances found in the Defense of Habitation Law, codified under N.C. General Statute 14-51.2 et. seq.," the news release reads.

It went on to state a homeowner need not guess the intention of the intruder and that the law provides that a "person who unlawfully and by force enters or attempts to enter a person's home, motor vehicle, or workplace is presumed to be doing so with the intent to commit an unlawful act involving force or violence."

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