A local 17 year-old teenager from League City has been sentenced to two years in prison for building a provocative sand sculpture at Galveston Beach in May.
Gabriel Fossman was sentenced as an adult for the crime of “Felony Lewdness”, which carries up to ten years imprisonment. With good behavior, Fossman may be released on good behavior after serving only 23 months.
Fossman and an accomplice created the sculpture on May 23rd in the 5200 block of Seawall Boulevard in Galveston. The accomplice, 67 year-old Thomas McSnagg, was granted immunity in exchange for his testimony against Fossman. He has also been accepted into the state Witness Protection Program and will receive a new identity, a job at a strip club, and sex-change surgery. The pair were arrested after a woman confronted them at the beach and phoned police. Fossman reportedly called the woman a “dumb bitch”, and was tasered 36 times after being handcuffed by officers.
In a dramatic moment during the trial, a prosecutor brought the sculpture into the courtroom for jurors to see.
The jury of 9 women, 2 men, and one person of undetermined sex, reached the guilty verdict after deliberating for only nine minutes.
Defense attorney Buster Lipp says his client maintains his innocence and he intends to appeal the verdict.
