FLDS bishop's ex-wife gains 'victory'
 $148K is set for child support
 
By Matthew Waller
San Angelo Standard-Times
 
SAN ANGELO, Texas — A protracted fight to extract child support from a leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has the recipient of the child support claiming a "victory."

Frederick Merril Jessop, the bishop of the FLDS Yearning for Zion Ranch in Schleicher County, has signed an order guaranteeing that he will pay $148,000 in child support to his former wife Carolyn Jessop for care of their eight children.

"Seven years of non-child-support and Merril is finally responsible for his children," Carolyn Jessop said. "It’s a huge victory for every woman in the FLDS."

Randy Wilson, Frederick Merril Jessop’s attorney, refused to comment after the hearing Thursday in the Tom Green County courthouse.

Willie Jessop, a spokesman for the FLDS, was present and he said he didn’t like the way Carolyn Jessop’s attorney, Natalie Malonis, who has in previous cases defended the FLDS, is now working against the sect.

"I think the unethics of CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) and Malonis of having inside information to then put them against the interest of the parents of the children show that they’re carpetbag lawyers making money when it’s in their best interest," Willie Jessop said.

The ordeal began in September when 51st District Judge Barbara Walther ordered that the child support be paid to compensate Carolyn Jessop after she left the FLDS in 2003 with her eight children, one of whom has special needs that require 24-hour care.

Carolyn Jessop said she did not pursue a child support order because she didn’t have the resources.

She gained a living after a while by writing two books about leaving the FLDS and her experiences living with the polygamous sect.

In February, Walther signed an order mandating that payment be made for the child support from September since the order had been given before only orally.

"What we agreed on is that all is due now," Carolyn Jessop said in the halls of the courthouse while attorneys met to draft the new order behind closed doors.

Malonis said the money from before September becomes like a defaulted loan — due at once if nothing had been done in 30 days.

In May, Malonis and Carolyn Jessop hadn’t received payment and they were ready to have the written order enforced.

"We were trying to get him in jail for not paying," Malonis said.

Frederick Merril Jessop then paid everything that was due from September to May.

The new order says that Frederick Merril Jessop must pay the $148,000 that had been due before September. Child support is to be paid to Carolyn Jessop initially at the rate of $2,450 per month, with arrears to be paid off at $100 per month. Malonis said she was told that all Frederick Merril Jessop could afford is $100 a month in addition to the $2,450. If a payment is missed, the entire amount becomes due.

Even with the order, Carolyn Jessop said she believes the issue isn’t over.

"Nothing has surprised me," she said. "They’ll use every loophole they can."

Malonis said that a typical child custody case requires one, maybe two trips to court. She said this case has required five trips.

"This is not a normal case," Malonis said.
 
gosanangelo.com
Originally published August 5, 2010
 
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