Man pleads guilty to urinating on Alamo 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Photo: BILLY CALZADA, San Antonio Express-News Image 1 of / 4 Caption Close Image 1 of 4 The Alamo shrine in San Antonio, Texas, Jan. 19, 2011. 
 
 The Alamo shrine in San Antonio, Texas, Jan. 19, 2011. Photo: BILLY CALZADA, San Antonio Express-News Image 2 of 4 The Alamo, known as the Shrine of Texas Liberty, is a top tourist attraction in the state. The Alamo, known as the Shrine of Texas Liberty, is a top tourist attraction in the state. Photo: File Photo, San Antonio Express-News Image 3 of 4 Workers at the Alamo applied an acrylic waterproofing product called Hydro-Stop to the vaulted portion of roof's exterior to control leaks. An engineer's report called water intrusion the "single largest threat to the continued viability of the Alamo structure." Workers at the Alamo applied an acrylic waterproofing product called Hydro-Stop to the vaulted portion of roof's exterior to control leaks. An engineer's report called water intrusion the "single largest threat ... more Photo: William Luther/wluther@express-news.net Image 4 of 4 The Alamo is seen in an aerial image Friday July 1, 2011 as workers applying an acrylic waterproofing product called Hydro-Stop to the vaulted portion of the roof's exterior to control leaks. An engineer's report has called water intrusion the "single largest threat to the continued viability of the Alamo structure." The Alamo is seen in an aerial image Friday July 1, 2011 as workers applying an acrylic waterproofing product called Hydro-Stop to the vaulted portion of the roof's exterior to control leaks. An engineer's ... more Photo: WILLIAM LUTHER, William Luther/wluther@express-news.net Man pleads guilty to urinating on Alamo 1 / 4 Back to Gallery 
 
 SAN ANTONIO — An El Paso man who urinated on the Alamo will pay for damage to the state shrine and could face time in a state jail under a plea bargain, officials said. 
 
 Daniel Athens, 23, pleaded guilty Tuesday to “felony level criminal mischief of a public monument or place of human burial,” according to a release from Bexar County District Attorney Susan Reed that bore the headline “Don't Whizz on the Alamo.” 
 
 The plea bargain put a cap on his punishment of 18 months in state jail and included restitution of $4,000 to be paid to the Alamo because that's what it cost to repair damage to the limestone facade of the roughly 250-year-old mission-era church. 
 
 The charge usually carries a maximum punishment of two years' incarceration. Prosecutors have indicated they will oppose Athens' bid for probation when he is sentenced in April by state District Judge Ray Olivarri. 
 
 Athens was initially arrested on April 14, 2012, on two Class C misdemeanor charges of public intoxication and urinating in public after relieving himself on the shrine, according to earlier reports. The district attorney's office had previously indicated it might pursue a state jail felony charge. 
 
 A member of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas had said the man ducked under a barrier chain in front of the church and urinated to the left of the front door before he was tackled by a member of the Alamo Rangers about 9:25 p.m. on a Saturday. Before the incident, the last previous urination arrest at the Alamo was in January 2009, according to published reports. 
 
 The most famous Alamo defiler, heavy metal rocker Ozzy Osbourne, relieved himself on the 1930s Alamo Cenotaph at the site in 1982, then boasted about it during a concert at the HemisFair Arena. The City Council soon barred Osbourne from performing at any city-owned facilities. 
 
 He returned to San Antonio 10 years later to perform in a county-run facility and gave the DRT a $10,000 donation. 
 
 shuddleston@ express-news.net ||||| SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - An El Paso man faces up to 18 months in jail after pleading guilty to urinating on the Alamo, the iconic structure seen by many as the symbol of the Texas spirit. 
 
 “The message is, ‘don’t whiz on the Alamo,’” Bexar County District Attorney Susan Reed, said in a statement that added she would oppose any request for probation. 
 
 Daniel Athens, 23, pleaded guilty in a San Antonio court on Tuesday to the felony of Criminal Mischief of a Public Monument or Place of Human Burial, which carries a punishment of up to two years in prison. 
 
 Lawyers for Athens are working on a plea bargain with prosecutors, who are seeking 18 months in prison and drawing a line in the sand for a sentence that includes jail time. 
 
 Athens was arrested in April 2012 after an Alamo Ranger, one of the police officers who guard the state’s No. 1 tourist attraction, saw him relieve himself on the 260-year-old limestone facade of the building. 
 
 As part of a plea deal, Athens will have to pay $4,000 to repair any damage he caused. 
 
 The Alamo was constructed in the 1750s by Spanish colonists as a chapel to bring Christianity to the native peoples of what is now Texas. 
 
 It is best known for the 1836 battle between the Mexican Army and Texas settlers fighting for independence from Mexico. 
 
 The Alamo has suffered its share of urinary insults over the years, the most famous was from British rocker Ozzy Osbourne, who in 1982 urinated on the Cenotaph, a memorial to the Texans killed at the battle. 
 
 Osbourne was banned from the city by the city council, a symbolic move that was later rescinded after he donated $10,000 for the Alamo’s upkeep.
– On April 14, 2012, Daniel Athens just couldn't hold it any longer, so he ducked under a chain and relieved himself on the big building behind it. Because that building happened to be the Alamo—as in, the Alamo—the 23-year-old found himself in a San Antonio court yesterday pleading guilty to “felony level criminal mischief of a public monument or place of human burial,” reports MySanAntonio. He faces up to 18 months in state jail and a $4,000 fine, the latter because urine takes a toll on the limestone facade of a 250-year-old church. Coverage of the incident, like this at Reuters, is nearly universal in noting two things: The local DA headlined her press release "Don't Whizz on the Alamo," and Ozzy Osbourne peed there in 1982.