He spent over 13 months in detention waiting for the court to decide whether he'd be charged as an adult or a juvenile. During this time, he was described as a model inmate. The community organized and demanded Wilson be charged as a minor, but the judge decided to try the teenager as an adult.

Wilson was 14 years old when his best friend Jor’Dell Richardson, also 14, was murdered by the Aurora Police, who faced no consequences for that killing. This same system is now trying to put him in jail for years.

In the months leading up to the court date, local organizations have been putting pressure on District Attorney Brian Mason, who has the power to stop the charges now. The Denver-Aurora Community Action Committee organized a letter-writing campaign and call-in demanding, “Drop the charges on Lourease ‘ManMan’ Wilson! Stop trying children as adults! Community control over the police!”

During the trial, the prosecutors brought ten witnesses to the stand. Since the alleged incident happened over a year and half ago, witnesses often stated “I don’t recall” or contradicted their body cam footage. The verdict is still out in this trial; since there were so many witnesses, time ran over and a second court date was set for October 1, at 1:30 p.m. to finish the trial.

Miles Thompson, an organizer with the Denver Aurora Community Action Committee said, “We at DACAC, along with the community, are watching this case closely. We hope that District Attorney Brian Mason does the right thing and drops the charges against Wilson, and that he stops trying kids as adults. For a DA who campaigned as a Democrat under the guise of ‘Doing the Right thing no matter what,’ we will remember his decision in this case, come election season.”

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