Sondra R. Rodrigues, attorney, teacher, reporter, and mentor, has died at 76
She helped exonerate Anthony Wright in 2016 after he served 25 years in prison and ensured proper medical treatment for Pennsylvania inmates suffering from hepatitis C in the 1990s.
Sondra R. Rodrigues, 76, of Philadelphia, civic-minded attorney who specialized in representing indigent criminal defendants, former English teacher for the School District of Philadelphia, onetime reporter for the Germantown Courier newspaper, and mentor, died Tuesday, Nov. 22, of hydrocephalus at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital.
As a journalist for four years, inspirational teacher from 1976 to 1997, and attorney who, among other achievements, helped exonerate Germantown resident Anthony Wright in 2016, Ms. Rodrigues directed nearly all her professional efforts to helping the disadvantaged and educating her students and the general public about all sorts of topics.
She and attorneys for the Pennsylvania Innocence Project helped free Wright, who served 25 years in prison for rape and murder before DNA evidence proved his innocence. She earned her law degree in night classes at Temple University in 1986 while teaching full-time and went on to represent dozens of indigent defendants and others in court proceedings over the next 3½ decades.
She defended other Innocence Project clients, helped prison inmates receive proper medical treatment for hepatitis C in the 1990s, and served on the Philadelphia Bar Association’s criminal justice mentoring summit in 2008. In 2009, the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania presented her with a Pro Bono Publico Award for “exceptional pro bono service to the underprivileged” in Philadelphia’s Common Pleas Court Trial Division.
“Now chiefly an appellate attorney who handles state and federal matters, I’ve been quite successful in overturning convictions and reducing sentences,” Ms. Rodrigues said on her LinkedIn page. “I am interested as well in helping former prisoners restructure their lives.” Her husband, Michael Wojciechowski, said: “She worked best under pressure and with a deadline. "
In addition to teaching English and mentoring middle-school students, she later prepared older pupils for the General Educational Development test that earned them a high school equivalency credential. In 1978, Marjorie Farmer, then the school district’s executive director of reading and English language arts, wrote a letter of recognition to Ms. Rodrigues that said: “I know you are proud of the work of your students, and they are fortunate indeed to have your guidance!”
» READ MORE: Ms. Rodrigues worked on the Anthony Wright case that collapsed
The wide range of stories she wrote as a reporter for the Germantown Courier from 1978 to 1981 included those about a local alcohol rehabilitation center, an employment program for senior workers, medical successes at a nearby hospital, tutoring programs for struggling students, and the first local chapter of the American Wine Society. She also covered zoning conflicts, public safety issues, and other topics of concern to Germantown residents.
She opened her featured front-page story in the Courier’s West Oak Lane edition on Oct. 11, 1978, by writing: “William Dillard is a 24-year-old with a lot of love in his heart. September 28, William donated his kidney to save his 33-year-old sister’s life.”
Gregory F. Atzert, then director of public relations for the Germantown Dispensary and Hospital, wrote a letter of thanks to Ms. Rodrigues in 1978 that said: “Thank you for the excellent article on Dr. Funch’s ear clip method to stop smoking. The response of your newspaper’s readers to the story was overwhelming. At last night’s session, almost 40 people attended.”
Born April 14, 1946, in Philadelphia, Sondra Rozina Rodrigues was adopted by her aunt as an infant. She graduated from Philadelphia High School for Girls, worked for a few years as a postal clerk in New York, and returned to Philadelphia to attend La Salle University.
She was a classroom lab assistant for the School District of Philadelphia until she earned her bachelor’s degree, and later a master’s degree, in education at La Salle.
She met Wojciechowski while she was a teacher and he was a school district police officer, and they married in 1990 and lived in West Mount Airy. “We just hit it off,” said her husband, who left endearing origami animals on her desk when they were dating. “She really helped me expand my horizons.”
Ms. Rodrigues and her husband rescued cats, traveled to Europe, and went to concerts, the theater, and movies together. She liked to sing, knew the lyrics to most of her favorite songs, was drawn to all things Marilyn Monroe, and her cell phone ring tone was the introduction to the TV show Days of Our Lives.
She underwent several hip replacement surgeries and used a wheelchair over the last few years. “But it never slowed her down,” her husband said. “We had 32 wonderful years.”
In a tribute, a colleague said: “She was a wonderful friend. She was always happy. … She never lost her touch of humanity.” Another friend said “She was a kind, giving person.”
In addition to her husband, Ms. Rodrigues is survived by a brother and other relatives. A brother died earlier.
Services were Dec. 1.
Donations in her name may be made to the Pennsylvania SPCA, 350 Erie Ave., Philadelphia, Pa. 19134.