Valley News from the Secretary's Office

Brethren:

The sentencing hearing  for the El Paso Scottish Rite arsonist has been held - the arsonist  pleaded guilty and the Judge sentenced him to a provisional sentence of  40 years.  

The arsonist will undergo mental health treatment at a  Federal facility until he is deemed competent to face his final  sentencing on the 40 year sentence.  Essentially, it is a holding  sentence pending the resolution of his mental health status.  Mental  health professionals submitted opinions that treatment options for the  arsonist are limited and it is possible that his stay at the Federal  facility will be long term due to his particular mental defects.

I am sure that my explanation lacks some legalese, if so my apologies, I tried to make it understandable.

A  restitution hearing will be held at a later date but we are not under  any delusion that whatever restitution is awarded will ever be  collectible.

I want to thank Bro. Steven Gragg for his service to  our Valley.  He attended every hearing for the last year and a half and  represented our Scottish Rite well.

I  also want to thank the members who volunteer their time with our  in-house work crew, as well as the members who have generously donated  to the building repair fund. If you are interested and able to donate,  please mail your donations to:
 

El Paso Scottish Rite Foundation
301 W. Missouri Ave
El Paso, TX 79901

In  closing, our Temple restoration is about 90 percent complete.  We have a  myriad of final detail tasks we need to address and the work continues.   Thanks go out to everyone that assisted us in the work, both  physically and financially.

Fraternally,
Larry V. Kane, 33°
General Secretary