FLDS contemplating harassment complaint
 
Jason Ferguson
Custer County Chronicle - Custer, South Dakota
 
The feud between Members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) compound southwest of Pringle and some of their neighbors escalated this past week, when a member of the compound threatened to file a harassment complaint against two of the neighbors, Richard and Cookie Hickstein.

The issue started late last month, when the Hicksteins began going on the land of a neighbor or on to county road right-of-way near the compound to take photos of all the work FLDS members were doing on their land. Before then, Cookie would occasionally take a photo from her deck of them hauling in equipment or of the watchtower on the compound, but not on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.

After a while of the photo taking, Cookie contacted Custer County Sheriff Rick Wheeler about whether the Hicksteins were doing anything wrong, and Wheeler said a compound member had contacted him about the picture taking, but had not filed a complaint. He also told the Hicksteins no laws were being broken.

However, on Oct. 3, the Hicksteins were heading to Rapid City to take Richard’s mother shoping, and ended up following an FLDS vehicle into Rapid City, which Cookie said was inadvertent, because of both the construction on the way to Rapid City and the mere fact the two cars were going to the same place at the same time. It was after that the FLDS contacted Wheeler to inquire what had to be done to file a complaint against the Hicksteins.

Cookie said on Sept. 27, the Hicksteins were on private property at the fence line between the FLDS property and the private property when one of the heads of the compound, Ben "Ed" Johnson, came out and talked to them for close to an hour. During that time, Cookie said Richard asked Johnson three of four times if he would like them to stop taking photos, to which he never responded.

After learning of the possibility of the complaint being filed, the Hicksteins met with Wheeler and states attorney Tracy Kelley, who advised them it was best not to take the photos anymore, Cookie said.

South Dakota Codified Law 22-19A-1 definies stalking as "willfully, maliciously and repeatedly following or harassing another person." It defines "harass" as "a knowing and willful course of conduct directed at any person which seriously alarms or annoys the person and serves no legitimate purpose."

Kelley said she does not have any written complaint or report concerning the picture taking, so she cannot speak directly to how the picture taking would apply to the stalking elements.

"Without such, I would not assume any violation of law on her part," she said.

Kelley added that while this covers only the criminal aspect of stalking, there are civil causes of action that can arise.

Complicating things is the fact the Hicksteins work for Jim Farmer, so the couple asked if they would be subject to further complaints by entering a cabin that is on FLDS land. Cookie said they were told it would not be a problem to go the cabin, but they may want to let the FLDS know they were coming on the property. They were also told once again they had broken no laws, but could face a civil case from the continual taking of photos.

After that, Richard phoned Johnson and told them they would stop taking photos, to which Johnson responded, "We just want to be a good neighbor."

"I don’t know if they plan on filing a complaint or not," Cookie said. "I guess we will know if the sheriff shows up at our door and arrests us."

The possibility of a civil suit looms large over the Hicksteins, since they do not have nearly the funds the FLDS to fight any lawsuit that may come their way.

Cookie said they were taking the pictures because of all the construction work the FLDS is doing on its land.

"When someone is hauling gravel all day long every day, except Sunday, for over four months, you wonder what they are doing with all the gravel," she said. "They work from early in the morning until late at night with construction lights, sometimes past 11 p.m. So you wonder, what are they building?"

Wheeler said when Johnson contacted him, he indicated he was uncomfortable with them being near their property all the time taking pictures. Calls to the FLDS compound from the media are never answered or returned.

"There weren’t any laws being broken (with the picture taking) and I’m not sure I could have done anything about it," Wheeler said. "But he (Ed) was getting to the point he wanted some help. If someone came to my property and kept taking pictures, I would get distraught."

The Hicksteins, like the Von Rumps, another neighbor of the FLDS compound, have reached their wits end with the compound. Cookie said at this point, she feels the FLDS has more rights than they do. She said she wonders if she is allowed to walk her dog or visit other neighbors without getting a complaint filed against them.

"I will now live in constant fear of having a complaint filed against me if I just try to live here, by leaving my home in my vehicle, walking or just being outside," she said. "I feel we are the victim. Now I have to be careful in what I do and in my opinion, they can do whatever they want."

The Hicksteins have put their house up for sale because of the FLDS compound, and Cookie said it sat all summer without any interest. Their realtor told them they would have to disclose the FLDS compound is two miles away, which she believes will make it so the home is never sold.

"Who wants to purchase a home next to this? People move this far from town for the peace," she said. "You may as well live on the road leading into Hills Materials in Hot Springs with all the semis we have out here.

"There isn’t much that can be done. The FLDS is here to stay. I just wish the county would consider us, not just the FLDS. Yes the FLDS has rights, but so do we—I think. I’m not sure about our rights at this point."

No one wants to see the FLDS and its neighbors get along more than Wheeler. He spends a great deal of time in the area playing referee in the disputes. He says he understands it’s part of the job he signed up for, but has become a drain on the department.

"It’s every week," he said. "It takes me away from more productive things I could be working on."

Hickstein said with all the construction noise and traffic in the area, their ears, roads and culverts are ruined, as is their quality of life. Cookie said she has no hope it will ever get any better, a source of immense frustration for her.

"The FLDS isn’t going away, and will continue to grow," she said. "We moved 27 miles from town on a road that is a dead end with the idea it would be a nice place to retire. Our dream is shattered."
 
CusterCountyNews.com
Originally published Thursday, October 13th, 2011
 
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