In 1991, an entrepreneur named Isaac Wright Jr. received a life sentence in a New Jersey state prison after a wrongful conviction under state drug kingpin laws. He opened law books inside his prison cell and started working as a paralegal while serving his time.
This true account details how a wrongfully imprisoned man learned the law, uncovered police misconduct to overturn his own conviction, and walked out of the facility to become a licensed defense attorney.
A Life Sentence and a Corrupt Prosecutor
Wright was indicted and tried in Somerset County, New Jersey. The prosecution was led by Somerset County Prosecutor Nicholas Bissell. During the trial, Bissell and his team relied on perjured testimony and illegal police tactics to secure a guilty verdict.
Wright was sentenced to life in prison in 1991. The conviction mandated that he serve a minimum of thirty years before becoming eligible for parole. He was confined in a standard maximum-security cell measuring roughly 6 by 9 feet (1.8 by 2.7 meters).
Fighting the Law from a Prison Cell
While incarcerated at the New Jersey State Prison, Wright decided to study the very laws used to convict him. He became a prison paralegal, dedicating his time to reviewing cases and writing legal briefs for his fellow inmates. His detailed legal work directly led to the overturning of several wrongful convictions for other prisoners.
He then used this practical experience to dissect his own case. He uncovered documented police misconduct and deliberate suppression of evidence orchestrated by Bissell.
Overturning the Conviction and Gaining Freedom
Wright presented his findings to the court in a series of appeals. In 1996, his extensive legal work forced an evidentiary hearing that exposed the systemic corruption. Veteran police officers admitted under oath that Bissell had instructed them to lie and falsify reports during Wright’s trial.
Consequently, the judge overturned the life conviction. Wright was released from prison after spending over seven years behind bars. Nicholas Bissell later fled the authorities and died by suicide as law enforcement closed in.
Becoming a Licensed Defense Attorney
After his release, Wright pursued formal legal education. He earned his undergraduate degree and then graduated from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. He passed the New Jersey Bar Exam in 2008. The state bar character committee delayed his admission for nearly nine years while investigating his background.
In September 2017, the New Jersey Supreme Court officially admitted him to the bar. Wright was hired as a lawyer at Hunt, Hamlin & Ridley, the exact firm that had helped him during his prison appeals.