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Rockbridge County Circuit Court Judge Chris Russell Tuesday sentenced Jermale Jerome Fitz to the maximum $500 fine for a class III misdemeanor of unlawful destruction of property in relation to the fire that destroyed the Echols farmhouse in January 2022.
This sentence follows a jury trial in February, which found the defendant guilty of destruction of property, but not guilty to two initial charges of arson and statutory burglary.
The jury had made the decision after hearing testimony from property owners, law enforcement and first responders, and psychiatric experts who investigated the fire at the Echols farmhouse, a historic landmark at the intersection U.S. 501 and Va. 130 near Glasgow.
While Fitz was not present at Tuesday’s sentencing due to his admission to a psychiatric ward last week, defense attorney Jessica Armstrong spoke on his behalf.
“Mr. Fitz did spend 402 days waiting in jail for a trial. He had recently been released and was working on getting a job,” she said. “I believe he had two interviews lined up and was working on getting himself into a better position … he is now in a psychiatric ward and is receiving mental health help, so he is working on that.”
