Man killed during initiation at Masonic Lodge; Masons say gun not sanctioned part of rite

From: Mikal <mikalm_at_ix.netcom.com_at_hypermail.org>
Date: Tue, 9 Mar 2004 13:21:25 -0800

      (UPDATE: This was not a Masonic degree initiation, but an unofficial hazing-like stunt for the "Fellowcraft Club," a local group for 2nd Degree Masons)


      Man killed during initiation at Masonic Lodge; Masons say gun not sanctioned part of rite

      FRANK ELTMAN, Associated Press Writer
        
     


      (03-09) 08:49 PST PATCHOGUE, N.Y. (AP) --

      A man was killed during a ceremony at a Masonic temple when another member fired a gun loaded with real bullets instead of the expected blanks and shot him in the head, police said Tuesday.

      A 76-year-old man alleged to have fired the shot was arrested.

      William James, 47, was shot while participating in an induction Monday night at the Southside Masonic Lodge, Suffolk County police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

      Albert Eid, of Patchogue, was arrested and scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday, police officer Al Prim said. The district attorney's office said the .32-caliber pistol used in the shooting was licensed to Eid.

      Police Detective Lt. Jack Fitzpatrick said the ceremony included a loud noise to frighten the new member. The inductee faces the front of the room and cans are stacked up behind him, he said. A gun is fired near the inductee's head and the cans are toppled, Fitzpatrick added.

      The lieutenant said Eid had two guns -- one with blanks and one with real bullets -- and he apparently pulled out the wrong one.

      Carl Fitje, grand master of the New York State Freemasons, said in a statement Tuesday that guns do not play a role in any officially sanctioned lodge ceremonies.

      "We don't use pistols," Steve Mayo, who described himself as a senior deacon of the lodge, told reporters Tuesday. "This is not a Masonic ceremony where we bring pistols."

      Mayo said the Monday night ceremony was an initiation into the Fellow Craft, which is the second degree within the multilevel Masonic system.

      Mayo said James, of Medford, had been a member of the lodge for a few months while Eid had been a member for many years.

      "This is very upsetting, very upsetting that one of our brothers was accidentally killed," he said.

      James worked for the planning department of the Long Island town of Brookhaven, spokesman Dave Kennedy said.


     



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Received on 2004-03-09 13:21:19