Second Soldier Guilty In Race Murder

A former Fort Bragg soldier accused along with a fellow ex-soldier of killing two people because they were black was convicted Friday of first-degree murder.

After less than a full day of deliberations, jurors convicted Malcolm Wright on two counts. He showed little emotion as the verdict was read.

Wright, whose spider web tattoo and involvement in a neo-Nazi skinhead group was central to the case, could face the death penalty, even though triggerman James Burmeister was sentenced to life in prison following his conviction. Wright’s sentencing phase was set for Monday.

On Feb. 27, the 21-year-old Burmeister, also was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in the shootings of Burden and Michael James on Dec. 7, 1995.

Prosecutors contended that Burmeister killed the couple for no other reason than to earn a spider web tattoo, a sign among racist skinheads at nearby Fort Bragg that the wearer had killed a black or a homosexual.