'Last Chance U' star Isaiah Wright out of jail after striking plea deal in Alcoa killing

A former football player charged in the fatal stabbing of 18-year-old Caleb Radford is out of jail after he struck a plea deal to cooperate with Blount County prosecutors on Wednesday, court records show.

Isaiah Wright, a running back featured on the Netflix series "Last Chance U," pleaded guilty to facilitation of aggravated robbery in exchange for having his criminal homicide charge dropped, according to a copy of the plea agreement.

Wright, who had been jailed since September, received credit for time served and was sentenced to five years of supervised probation. He agreed to help law enforcers build their case as they seek to convict Keshawn Hopewell and Itiq Green of murder.

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Additionally, the plea deal requires Wright, 20, to provide truthful information about his older brother, Camion Patrick. Patrick also was charged in Radford's killing, but a judge dismissed his case last year.

"I don't suspect any further problems for Camion," Patrick's attorney, Kevin W. Shepherd, said Wednesday.

Wright's attorney, Kevin Love, called the deal a "fair resolution" given the facts of the case.

A deadly ride

Authorities initially charged Hopewell, Green, Wright and Patrick with criminal homicide following Radford's death on July 25, 2017. The recent high school graduate and new father was stabbed repeatedly before he was found bleeding at an intersection in Alcoa.

Radford had met the four men at an apartment complex earlier that day. Hopewell and Green got into a vehicle driven by Radford. They then drove away, leaving Wright and Patrick behind.

Radford planned to purchase a half-pound of marijuana, then sell some of it to Hopewell, The Daily Times reported.

More:Ex-college football player seeks distance from pair in Alcoa fatal stabbing case

In police interviews that were played in court, Hopewell and Green pointed fingers at each other. Hopewell said Green stabbed Radford. Green said Hopewell stabbed Radford first.

Green reportedly admitted he knew Hopewell planned to rob someone but said he didn't know the target was Radford. He said he stabbed Radford after Radford turned around and grabbed his shirt while he sat in the back seat of the vehicle.

“All I remember was (Radford) said ... ‘Oh please don’t kill me.’ And (he) grabbed me," Green said during an interview with Alcoa Police Department detectives.

'Just get the money'

Green, 28, and Hopewell, 21, allegedly took more than $1,000 from Radford. They then returned on foot to the apartment complex where Wright and Patrick were waiting, and all four left in a vehicle.

Wright initially told police he had no knowledge of Hopewell and Green's plans, then later said he knew their goal was to "just get the money," The Daily Times reported.

Patrick, for his part, maintained he knew nothing about the robbery or the killing until Alcoa police showed up at the Harriman home where he and Wright were living.

The charge against Patrick was dismissed at the preliminary hearing in November, with a judge ruling prosecutors hadn't shown enough evidence to tie him to the crime.

Wright's attorney, Kevin Love, said prosecutors showed a seven-second Snapchat video at the hearing that showed "four people jumping around with money, chanting something." Love said there were questions about when the video was made and whether Wright could be identified in it, but he said it could have posed a problem for Wright at trial.

Now, Hopewell and Green each face charges of first-degree murder, felony murder, especially aggravated robbery and theft of property greater than $1,000, a Blount County Circuit Court clerk said Wednesday.

Green is set to appear in court again on Nov. 28, while Hopewell is set to appear on Jan. 23.

'Last Chance U'

The September arrests of Wright and Patrick drew national headlines due to the brothers' football prowess.

Patrick played football for Lenoir City High School and once was a commit of the University of Tennessee. He eventually ended up at Indiana University, where he played until injuries ended his career. The school suspended him after his arrest.

Wright earned a scholarship offer from Auburn after playing high school football in Florence, Mississippi. He ultimately enrolled at East Mississippi Community College, where Patrick also played. The school is featured in the Netflix football docu-series "Last Chance U."

In the show, Wright suffers an injury and clashes with his head coach. An episode in the recently released third season documents Patrick and Wright's involvement in the Radford case.

A Twitter account that appears to belong to Wright tweeted Wednesday, saying "FREEDOM!!" Another tweet said, "My story isn't over... I'm ready to play ball again!"

Reach Travis Dorman at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @travdorman.