March 19th, 2026 Local News
St. Francois Co., Mo. (KFMO) - A St. Francois County jury has found 62-year-old Pete Wright guilty of the Class B felony of knowingly committing violence upon a Department of Mental Health employee following a trial held Tuesday, March 10, 2026.
According to court testimony, the charge stems from a July 2022 incident at the Sex Offender Rehabilitation and Treatment Service (SORTS) facility in Farmington. A nurse supervisor testified that he responded to a disturbance on a ward after hearing a call for assistance. Upon entering, he observed Wright yelling aggressively and creating a volatile situation.
The nurse told the court he attempted to de-escalate the situation while shielding other staff members. Wright then stepped back and struck the nurse in the jaw. Surveillance video of the incident was presented to the jury during the trial, with the impact reportedly audible in the courtroom.
Assistant Prosecutor Shane Porter presented the case for the state, and Circuit Judge Brice Sechrest presided over the proceedings.
Wright has a lengthy criminal history. In 1988, he was convicted in Jackson County, Missouri, of forcible sodomy and felonious restraint and sentenced to 30 years in prison. In 2019, prior to completing that sentence, the State of Missouri successfully petitioned to have Wright declared a sexually violent predator. He was then committed to the Department of Mental Health and placed at the SORTS facility in Farmington.
Officials say there have been nine referrals for criminal charges involving Wright for alleged assaults on staff since his arrival at the facility.
Wright now faces a possible sentence of 5 to 15 years in prison. Sentencing is scheduled for May 1, 2026. If sentenced to prison time, he will be transferred from the SORTS facility back to the Missouri Department of Corrections to serve his sentence.