Wake District Attorney Colon Willoughby says he wanted to bring Thomas Wright's case full circle.

Speaking to reporters after a jury found the former lawmaker guilty of obstruction of justice, Willoughby was asked how the public benefited from the trial if Wright received no extra prison time.

He replied that Wright's campaign finance irregularities were the original reason investigators started looking into the Wilmington Democrat. Only then did they find other reasons to charge him with fraud, which Wright was convicted of in April.

"I think that was the original reason that these cases came about," Willoughby said of the obstruction of justice charge.

Wright's attorney Doug Harris told reporters that Judge Donald Stephens took away any chance for a "not guilty" verdict.

"It was impossible to win based on the instructions the jury was given," he said.

Harris also renewed his argument that the charge of obstruction of justice didn't fit Wright's crimes related to campaign finances.

"He should have been charged with that misdemeanor, and he should have pleaded guilty to that misdemeanor," Harris said. "You must charge according to what the crime is."

Willoughby called for tougher penalties for campaign finance violations.

A Wake County jury has found Thomas Wright guilty of felony obstruction of justice.

Judge Donald Stephens announced the verdict at 11:53 a.m. Wednesday, after about two and a half hours of deliberation Tuesday and Wednesday.

Sentencing is set to begin.

UPDATE: Wright's attorney Doug Harris said he intends to appeal.

UPDATE II: Stephens sentenced Wright to six to eight months in state prison, to run concurrently with his existing prison term. Wright will not serve extra time for the conviction.

UPDATE III: Wake District Attorney Colon Willoughby did not call for consecutive sentences, which would have meant more prison time. "I don't think it's in the state's interests to extend the time of his incarceration," Willoughby said.

The Wake County jury sitting in judgment of Thomas Wright deliberated for 50 minutes Tuesday before leaving about 5 p.m.

Jurors are due back at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday to resume deliberations.

Wright, a Wilmington Democrat and former House member, is charged with obstruction of justice in connection with $150,350 in campaign contributions that he failed to disclose. He is already serving a state prison sentence for a conviction in April on three fraud charges.

Jurors have three options: guilty of felony common-law obstruction of justice, guilty of misdemeanor common-law obstruction of justice or not guilty. A misdemeanor conviction could add as much as 45 days to his prison sentence. A felony conviction, which requires intent or malice, could add as much as 15 months depending on state sentencing guidelines.

The jury has 11 women and one man.

NOTE: Investigators have at times said that Wright did not disclose $185,000 in campaign contributions. The $150,350 figure comes from a narrower list of contributions, and it is the number that was presented to the jury.

Jury selection has begun in the second criminal trial of former state Rep. Thomas Wright.

The Wilmington Democrat is charged with obstruction of justice for failing to disclose more than $100,000 in campaign contributions, David Ingram reports. He was convicted in April of three separate charges related to financial improprieties.

A former top ally of then House Speaker Jim Black, Wright was once among the most powerful members of the House.

Judge Donald Stephens on Monday denied a motion from Wright's lawyer to dismiss the obstruction of justice charge. Wright's lawyer Doug Harris of Greensboro had argued that obstruction of justice must involve an inquiry by investigators in the criminal justice system. But Stephens ruled that the charge can cover the state Board of Elections' campaign finance requirements.

Opening statements could start as early as today.