Church arsonist sentenced to nine years in prison

By JoAn Bjarko
North Forty News

The young man who burned down the historic Virginia Dale Community Church last November will serve nine years in prison, a district court judge decided on April 2.

The arsonist, Austin Gene Mayo, 20, was transferred April 14 from the Larimer County Detention Center to the Colorado Department of Corrections.

Mayo, a former member of the Livermore Volunteer Fire Department, pleaded guilty to felony first-degree arson on Feb. 20. In addition to the church fire, he admitted to starting three other fires in the Livermore area last November. His sentence includes $75,756 restitution for the combined loss from the four fires.

The church, which has been rebuilt with volunteer help and donations, is located on U.S. Highway 287 in the Livermore Fire Protection District. Mayo went to fight the fire after he started it.

Testimony at Mayo's sentencing hearing before Judge Jolene Blair in Fort Collins ranged from pleas that Mayo serve his sentence in the community to a recommendation from the prosecutor that Mayo spend the maximum 24 years in prison.

Deputy District Attorney Leah Bishop contended that Mayo fit the profile of a "hero" or "vanity" arsonist. "He liked the recognition that came from being a firefighter," she said, adding that Mayo knew he was putting other firefighters and the community at risk when he started the fires.

Although she advocated for a community-based sentence, defense attorney Linda Miller said after the hearing that nine years in prison is proportional to what other convicted arsonists received in Larimer County in the past year.

Several members of the Virginia Dale Community Church said they thought the sentence should have been in the range of 12 to 15 years.

A fourth-generation member of the Virginia Dale church, Dana Moen-Wright said it was difficult to accept that Mayo felt remorse. "You don't really know how he feels because he doesn't say anything," Moen-Wright said. "A lot of other people said it for him, but he didn't say it."

Mayo did not testify at his sentencing hearing, but two fellow firefighters complimented Mayo's work with the department and said his sentence should allow him to serve the community. Last year, Mayo was named the district's firefighter of the year.

Miller told Judge Blair that Mayo's family physician had prescribed Lexapro, a drug for depression and anxiety disorder, for her client last September. Mayo, however, stopped taking his medication around the time he started the fires, Miller said, adding that the effects of abrupt withdrawal could have contributed to his actions.

Mayo's parents, Glen and Helen Mayo of Livermore, asked the judge for leniency, noting that their son had no criminal history prior to the November fires. "When this series of incidents came up, it was a total shock," Glen Mayo said. "I don't feel he has a criminal personality; he has always tried to help people."

Helen Mayo said her son was expressing suicidal thoughts prior to taking the anti-depressant medication. "I ask the court to show leniency to him because he is a very good person," she said. "I want my son to get some help."

Bishop contended that Mayo tells people what he thinks will result in a light sentence. He did not admit to the arsons until he failed a polygraph test, she said, and during the investigation he lied about being fired for employee theft. The deputy district attorney added that the risks to the community are too great for a community-based sentence.

In setting the nine-year sentence, to be followed by five years of mandatory parole following release from prison, Blair noted that the fires were life threatening. "It is particularly repugnant that a person would burn down a church," the judge added.

She said she also considered the fact that Mayo had no criminal history and he had the love and support of his family. "There are a lot of good things about Austin Mayo," Blair said.

Mayo was taken to a corrections department diagnostic center in Denver. Miller said the state will decide where Mayo will serve his prison sentence. Mayo will ask the department to consider boot camp as on option, she said. Such facilities are modeled after military boot camp, and they offer group counseling and job training.