State Sen. Roderick D. Wright (D-Inglewood) took the stand Thursday afternoon in his perjury and voter fraud trial.

Wright’s attorney, Winston Kevin McKesson, asked the veteran legislator about how long he has lived in the area and the various political jobs he has held, starting as a Pepperdine University student in the early 1970s.

Before court adjourned for the day, McKesson also asked Wright, a Democrat, about his Inglewood property that is at the heart of the district attorney’s case.

Wright’s testimony is scheduled to resume Friday morning.


A county grand jury indicted Wright on eight felony counts in September 2010. Wright pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutors allege that Wright schemed to mislead voters when he registered to vote and filed for office using the Inglewood address but failed to meet certain residency requirements. They also allege that he voted illegally several times.

The Inglewood address was assigned to the state Senate district Wright ran for and won in 2008. State law requires candidates to live in the district they represent and voters can cast ballots only for offices in their own districts.

McKesson said Wright made a good faith effort to follow a law that is “murky.”


Earlier, the jury heard testimony from Wright’s unofficial stepmother and from his longtime legislative aide.

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jean.merl@latimes.com


Twitter: @jeanmerl