The three men - Collin Mayo of Temple, Dennis Schlieper of Troy and Levi Gameson of Moody - all pleaded guilty to felony criminal mischief charges during a July 24 hearing before a standing-room-only crowd.
That hearing was halted at about 5 p.m. after testimony on behalf of Mayo from his father, mother and high school football coach. Each man is represented by a different attorney and today was the soonest date that all the parties could get together to continue the hearing.
Those who testified in Mayo’s behalf said he was a young man who made a major mistake but was the type of individual who is capable of making some type of restitution and a candidate for deferred probation, which allows an offender to clear his record by completing the terms of probation.
Probation is an option that Judge Fancy Jezek may consider. The vandalism spree was so extensive, however, that the monetary damage of about $200,000 means Judge Jezek may also consider a prison term of between five and 99 years.
District Attorney Henry Garza was adamant when he cross examined Mayo’s father and Troy High School football coach Grady Rowe, telling the men that the crime spree was severe enough that it warranted prison time.
“I believe it’s proper your son goes to the penitentiary,” he said to Mayo’s father. “It’s not a grave, it’s 65 graves.
“If somebody knocked down your mama’s grave, shouldn’t they go to jail? Then multiply it by 64 times.”
Mayo’s parents said his involvement in the spree came months after he learned that an uncle he was close to had committed suicide. They said when Mayo learned this, he lost his faith and became angry at God.
The three pleaded guilty to blacking out the eyes on statues of angels and the Virgin Mary, painting pentagrams on the chest of an 8-foot tall Jesus statue, damaging other smaller figurines and knocking over scores of headstones at Hillcrest Cemetery in Temple.
At a church in Troy, they smashed a stained glass window, painted a pentagram in a Bible and painted male genitalia on a back wall.
The three men were among seven people, including three juveniles, who were accused of participating in the vandalism in June 2007.
More details about why the other men may have been involved in the vandalism are expected to be revealed during today’s hearing.
A fourth adult charged in the spree, Kristen Solis, of Temple, has a hearing scheduled for Monday.
