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Here's the latest on what's happening. These news articles are listed in chronological order. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| FLDS may see more charges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International sex trafficking suspected | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard Times Originally published November 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — Canadian law enforcement is coming to Texas to investigate allegations of crimes that may have been committed on Canadian soil related to human trafficking for sexual purposes by a polygamist sect. Officials from the Royal Canadian Mounted Police are scheduled to come to Texas on Dec. 11-16 to conduct investigations into operations of the polygamy-sanctioning Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said. "We were provided with information generated as a result from the RCMP receiving information from the attorney general in British Columbia and from Texas with respect that young girls were being transported across the border," Moskaluk said. "In essence, it's human trafficking in connection with illicit sexual activity," Moskaluk said. British Columbia has a community of FLDS members at Bountiful, a community near Creston in the southern Kootenay Mountains a few miles from the Idaho border. The British Columbia Supreme Court was involved in considering whether to uphold Canada's anti-polygamy laws, a process which required several months and came to a conclusion this week with a ruling that the laws are constitutional but children under 18 involved in polygamous relationships should be exempt from prosecution. "Having found a reasoned apprehension that polygamy is associated with numerous harms, it follows that criminalizing the practice is one way of limiting those harms," the court decision states. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Editorial: Polygamy is crime; enforce the law | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Vancouver Sun editorial Originally published November 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| For many years, successive B.C. attorneys-general refused to charge polygamists in Bountiful, and the excuse was always the same: The law likely infringes the polygamists' freedom of religion, the A-Gs maintained, and therefore the law would not withstand a constitutional challenge. Like many predictions, that went down in flames this week, as B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman upheld the law. He concluded that while the law does infringe freedom of religion, the infringement is justified because polygamy is inherently harmful. Indeed, Bauman spent a great deal of time reviewing the testimony of expert witnesses who have studied polygamy in both fundamentalist Mormon and Muslim communities around the world. In every case, they found that polygamy harms women, men and children. Women in plural marriages tend to suffer from higher rates of depression and other mental health problems, and are also at greater risk of physical abuse than women in monogamous relationships. Polygamous women also enjoy little economic freedom or security, particularly if and when they end the relationship. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bountiful child-bride probe leads RCMP to U.S. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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CBC News Originally published November 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| RCMP officers from British Columbia are heading to Texas next month to dig deeper into allegations of child trafficking. The investigation was launched after U.S. police found documents that described how leaders of a breakaway Mormon sect shuttled children over the border to be married to much older men. Three years ago, Texas police said they discovered a hidden vault of records when they raided a compound belonging to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. There were hundreds of boxes that included the dictated diaries of the church's self-proclaimed prophet, Warren Jeffs, and meticulously kept marriage records. Jeffs is serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison for sexually assaulting two of his child brides, aged 12 and 15. Affidavits filed by B.C.'s attorney general allege the two leaders of separate FLDS sects in Bountiful, B.C. — Winston Blackmore and James Oler — may have been witnesses at U.S. marriage ceremonies involving child brides, may have provided their own daughters or were married themselves to children. The RCMP won't divulge who is being investigated, said Cpl. Dan Moskaluk. "These allegations are historical allegations that occurred in the late '90s upwards to as late as 2006," Moskaluk said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy ruling shaky | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Opinion - Editorial The Cape Breton Post - Sydney, Nova Scotia Originally published November 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| British Columbia Supreme Court Justice Robert Bauman ruled Wednesday that Canada's anti-polygamy law does not violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. "In my view, the salutary effects of the prohibition far outweigh the deleterious," wrote Bauman. "The law seeks to advance the institution of monogamous marriage, a fundamental value in Western society from the earliest of times. It seeks to protect against the many harms which are reasonably apprehended to arise out of the practice of polygamy." Bauman's heart might have been in the right place, but it's questionable whether his arguments will pass muster with the Supreme Court of Canada. And it seems to be assumed that the case will indeed be appealed to the highest court in the land. Of those who endorse Bauman's ruling, there will be some who support it both because it "seeks to advance the institution of monogamous marriage" and because it "seeks to protect against the many harms" that the judge and many others argue polygamy gives rise to. And some will support it for both reasons. The former argument conjures up the debate around the decriminalization of "homosexual acts" in 1967 that prompted then justice minister Pierre Trudeau to utter the now-famous quote: "There's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation." The latter argument is based less on the sanctity of monogamous marriage and more on the argument that polygamy gives rise to increased rates of domestic violence, teenage marriage and sexual abuse. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A question of harm | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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North Shore News - North Vancouver, B.C. Originally published November 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. Supreme Court Justice Robert Bauman has confirmed Canada's polygamy law that says multiple marriages are illegal. Essentially, the judge's 335-page ruling, handed down Wednesday after a 42-day case held earlier this year, says that Canada's law is flawed but constitutional. The judge accepted the argument that polygamy is inherently harmful, siding with expert testimony that women in such relationships are at elevated risks running the gamut from psychological harm through financial harm to physical harm. Bauman emphasized that these effects are not specific to certain locations but rather "they are universal." That dealt with the argument that any harm in polygamous marriages comes from abusers. The judge has ruled that polygamy itself causes harm, not the way it is practised by certain people. However, Bauman said the law should be changed - without saying how - to exempt minors in polygamous relationships from prosecution. So the law on the books requires some tinkering. It's also likely the judgment will be appealed. Leonard Krog, NDP critic for the attorney-general, is right on the money in calling for an expedited appeal process so that the prosecution of polygamists can go ahead. A stay of proceedings ended the prosecutions of Winston Blackmore and James Oler, charged in 2009 with practising polygamy in Bountiful. That should never happen again in Canada. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Martinuk: Polygamy costs society in many ways | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Susan Martinuk The Calgary Herald Originally published November 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winston Blackmore is the notorious leader of an openly polygamous commune of about 1,500 people in Bountiful, British Columbia. At last count, he had a harem of some 25 wives and as many as 121 children. In January, 2009, Blackmore was arrested by the RCMP and charged with polygamy. Sadly, the charges were thrown out on a technicality and, since then, numerous RCMP investigations into allegations of sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, rape and discrimination against women, have failed to result in charges that stick. I'm hoping that Blackmore had an uneasy sleep last night, in the wake of a B.C. Supreme Court ruling Tuesday on the constitutionality of the law banning polygamy. He has long held that his right to practice polygamy is protected by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms; most particularly, the sections that uphold the freedom of religion and the autonomy of the individual. But his legal claims may soon be slipping away if this week's court decision is an indication of how Canada's courts view the practice of polygamy. In a landmark case, Chief Justice Robert Bauman ruled that Section 1 of the Charter, which allows for "reasonable limits" to be imposed on absolute rights if they can be "demonstrably justified," essentially trumps a polygamist's right to practice his perverted form of religion. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attorney General's statement on polygamy reference case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Indo-Canadian Voice - Surrey, BC Originally published Saturday, November 26th, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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VICTORIA – Attorney General Shirley Bond issued the following statement on Wednesday in response to the Supreme Court of B.C. decision on the polygamy reference case:
"I welcome the court’s decision to uphold the Criminal Code provisions regarding polygamy. The Province presented evidence during the case regarding some very serious social harms to British Columbians and Canadians. "As Chief Justice Robert Bauman recognized, this case is about two competing visions – one of personal harm versus state intrusion. As he clearly found, there is profound harm associated with polygamy, particularly for women and children. "Lastly, I would like to offer my sincere appreciation to all the staff in the Attorney General’s ministry for their hard work and dedication in presenting one of the most complicated and difficult constitutional cases in the history of our province." | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Top court must weigh polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Editorial Winnipeg Free Press Originally published November 26, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A British Columbia judge has upheld Canada's polygamy law that prohibits a person from being in a marriage, or conjugal union, of more than two people. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman decided Sec. 293 of the Criminal Code breaches the Charter of Rights and Freedoms' protection of religious freedom, but that it is a reasonable limit to the freedom because of the harm polygamy presents to women, children and society.
The case laid out ample evidence of that harm through the ages and in various societies where multiple marriages have existed. But the decision left other questions unanswered. The judge noted the law could result in the prosecution of spouses younger than 18, which would not survive a charter challenge. The complex ruling of a national, controversial law in an era of shifting attitudes toward the validity of various conjugal relationships, should be sent to the Supreme Court of Canada for greater deliberation. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C court rules against polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By QMI Agency London Free Press - London, Ontario Originally published November 26, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The lawyer who argued to decriminalize polygamy says he plans to appeal a ruling Wednesday that upheld the 120-year-old anti-law. Lawyer George Macintosh said he would likely appeal the ruling within the next 30 days, perhaps directly to the Supreme Court of Canada. "The issue wouldn’t be whether the conduct complained of is harmful because much of the conduct clearly is harmful," said Macintosh, who said he would not contest the judge’s findings of fact. "The issue instead is the constitutionality of this section and whether this section is the right way to go about it to deal with these harms." On Wednesday, B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman found the prohibition of polygamy prevents harm to women, children and society, and is consistent with Canada’s international human rights obligations. He acknowledged the law infringes on freedom of religion and may encourage polygamists to seek isolation, but he said it was justified as even fundamentalist Mormons can choose monogamy without sacrificing their religious beliefs, and Muslims are not mandated to have multiple wives. He said the law is meant to advance monogamous marriage as a fundamental value of Western society. He also ruled the law was unconstitutional when used to prosecute children under the age of 18. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| RCMP head to Texas for child trafficking case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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QMI Agency Calgary Sun - Calgary, Alberta Originally published Saturday, November 26, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| RCMP officers will be in Texas from Dec. 12 to 16 to explore a connection between Warren Jeffs, the leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS), and girls allegedly sent to him by their families in Bountiful, a polygamous community in B.C. "We were provided with information generated as a result from the RCMP receiving information from the attorney general in British Columbia and from Texas with respect that young girls were being transported across the border," RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk told the San Angelo Standard Times Friday. "In essence, it's human trafficking in connection with illicit sexual activity." Last month, Fredrick Merril Jessop was found guilty of marrying a 12-year-old girl to polygamist leader Jeffs, who is serving a life term for sexually assaulting two child brides. Jeffs, 55, leader of a breakaway Mormon sect, was convicted in August of sexually assaulting that girl and a 15-year-old he had taken as so-called "spiritual" wives. Prosecutors said the girls were among two dozen underage brides Jeffs had acquired over the last decade. A rural West Texas jury found Jessop, 75, guilty of performing an illegal marriage ceremony, a third-degree felony punishable by two to 10 years in prison and a fine up to $10,000. Jeffs' polygamist sect, which experts estimate has 10,000 followers in North America, has been condemned by the mainstream Mormon Church and is accused of promoting marriages between older men and girls. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abusive disgrace | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Noreen Hardy The Province - Vancouver, BC Originally published November 27, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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I am tired of old men like Winston Blackmore hiding behind the skirt of religious freedom to abuse young women they "marry." They banish young men to limit competition, abuse the welfare system, traumatize young people, but still the government does nothing.
I question a society such as ours that turns its back on the abuse of women and children. In retrospect, animals are treated better because animal control has the right to remove a dog, for example, when abuse is reported. Noreen Hardy, Surrey | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy not the real crime, abuse is | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Iain Hunter Victoria Times Colonist Originally published November 27, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Canada's anti-polygamy law has been tested rarely - there have been only two convictions in its 120-year history and neither of them involved a polygamous relationship that was abusive, which those who have never tried one assume is unavoidable. One who thinks so is Robert Baumann, the Supreme Court of B.C.'s chief justice. Last week he found the law constitutional - a finding that may or may not be agreed with when a real test, involving real people, gets into a court somewhere. All at once there's a clamour for the authorities to crack down on the goings-on at Bountiful, which for so long have seemed to be out of the law's reach, as if a judge's opinion is a call to arms. There's also a lot of handwringing about states in bedrooms, and the right of people in places where people think they can do whatever they damn well want. The chief justice went far back in history to come up with an important reason why polygamy should not be tolerated: It offends the "institution of monogamous marriage" which he traces back to "Greco-Roman society" and finds has become part of "the Western and philosophical tradition." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Private investigator's book looks at FLDS church | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kevin Jenkins The Spectrum Originally published November 27, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - A Cedar City private investigator visited with customers at a St. George bookstore Saturday as part of a national tour to promote a book about his eight-year effort to help bring Warren Jeffs and other fugitive leaders of a local polygamous religion to justice in court. Samuel Brower first began investigating the activities of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and its prophet's practice of marrying young girls to much older men in 2004, after Brower read a media account about divisions among the church's membership. In his book "Prophet's Prey," Brower writes about meeting with an ousted member of the church who was ordered to leave his home, which was owned by a communal trust managed by the church. Following that meeting, Brower became involved with a series of civil lawsuits aimed to bring attention to practices within the polygamous community, such as underage marriages, child abandonment, forced evictions and sexual assaults against young boys, he said. "The reason we brought the lawsuits is because law enforcement was dragging its feet," Brower said Saturday during the signing and discussion event at St. George's Barnes & Noble store. "Here we've got clients raped by Warren Jeffs and abandoned, and yet law enforcement was saying it's too hard (to prosecute)," he said. "I don't have the powers of arrest, so the next thing I can do is gently twist the politicians' arms. ... Civil litigation is what brought it into the public eye." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Does the Criminalization of Polygamy Protect Women and Children? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Written by Jens Pierre Urban Care2.com - Redwood City, California Originally published November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In 1967, Canada's former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau (then Justice Minister) famously argued: "There's no place for the state in the bedrooms of the nation." He was referring to an Omnibus Crime Bill that changed Canada's position on abortion, homosexuality and divorce law forever. Fast forward to 2005, when Canada significantly changed the traditional definition of marriage of a "voluntary union for life of one man and one woman, to the exclusion of all others." That year, the Supreme Court of Canada legalized same-sex marriage, which was confirmed in the Civil Marriage Act. What remains of the "traditional" definition of marriage is the prohibition of polygamous marriages, a stipulation that is codified in section 293 of the Canadian Criminal Code. However, the members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints (FLDS) have recently challenged the polygamy prohibition and last Wednesday, Chief Justice Robert J. Bauman of the Supreme Court of British Columbia rendered the decision. In a nutshell, Chief Justice Bauman found that the Criminal Code prohibition on polygamy breaches the constitutional right to freedom of religion and to life, liberty and security, but that the harm caused easily justifies the law. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| One wife is enough, says BC court | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Jeff Johnston Assistant External News Editor The Brock Press - Brock University - St. Catharines Ontario Originally published Monday, November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| On Nov. 23, the British Columbia Supreme Court upheld the long standing ban against polygamy in Canada saying that the law was in fact constitutional and a reasonable limit to the freedom of religion in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Now, the question is if people who continue to practice polygamy will be brought up on criminal charges. In 2009, Winston Blackmore and James Oler — leaders of a small Mormon sect not affiliated with the official church — were first charged with polygamy by the BC's Attorney General Wally Oppal. The charges on both men were subsequently dropped as the Attorney General had left and they were unable to build a viable case. The two leaders were from the town of Bountiful, BC, a predominantly Mormon community where some of its members practice polygamy. The town of Bountiful, BC has ties to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS). This group, that is based out of Texas and was led by Warren Jeffs, who was charged with sexual conduct with minors and incest back in 2006. Blackmore, who has more than 20 wives and at least 103 children, has claimed that being charged with polygamy is unconstitutional and against his right as a freedom of religion. This then introduced the legal question of polygamy as a religious right. Under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, Section two allows everyone the "freedom of conscience, religion [...] belief, thought and expression [...] and freedom of association". Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Decision to uphold anti-polygamy laws welcomed by pro-family groups | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Written by Deborah Gyapong Canadian Catholic News The Catholic Register - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Monday, 28 November 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| OTTAWA - Pro-family groups have welcomed a Nov. 23 British Columbia Supreme Court decision that upholds Canada's anti-polygamy law. "Anything that supports traditional, monogamous marriage is good and I think (the decision) sends a very clear message that our relationships are not exclusively personal and private," said Catholic Organization for Life and Family (COLF) assistant director Peter Murphy. "They have implications for those with whom we live and for society in general, so for that reason we're very pleased with the decision." The province of B.C. had asked the court whether the anti-polygamy law was constitutional after charges against a fundamentalist Mormon sect in Bountiful, B.C., were dropped based on concerns they would not stand up to a Charter religious freedom test. "In my view, the salutary effects of the prohibition far outweigh the deleterious," Chief Justice Robert Bauman wrote in his 335-page decision. "The law seeks to advance the institution of monogamous marriage, a fundamental value in Western society from the earliest of times. It seeks to protect against the many harms which are reasonably apprehended to arise out of the practice of polygamy." In the B.C. reference, the Attorneys General of B.C. and Canada, as well as pro-family interveners, argued the law is necessary because of the harms to society, especially women and children, through polygamous marriage. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Criminalizing polygamy was easy — but wrong | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Today's Letters Full Comment National Post - Don Mills, Ontario Originally published November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Re: No Such Thing As Good Polygamy, Lorne Gunter, Nov. 24.
Lorne Gunter goes from not caring what consenting adults do with each other to saying polygamy is an exception not merely because it's a weird practice but "a sick one that ultimately has no place in Canada." Mr. Gunter seems worried about balancing his oft-stated concern for individual rights with cases of abuse, but let's not pretend this is decision is anything but protecting the institution of marriage from socially unwanted change. When the Utah ban on polygamy was challenged in 2004 (a challenge that was eventually dismissed), Dani Eyer, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Utah, said the state will "have to step up to prove that a polygamous relationship is detrimental to society. ... There's no denying that thousands and thousands are doing that here and will maintain that it's healthy. ... The model of the nuclear family as we know it in the immediate past is unique, and may not be necessarily be the best model. Maybe it's time to have this discussion." What you'll find missing in the discussion is that the government should get out of the marriage business altogether and leave consenting adults to choose which relationships work for them. Criminalizing the practice of polygamy was the easy thing to do here — but it was the wrong one. Bruce Korol, Calgary. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy ban serves society | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Editorial Guelph Mercury - Guelph, Ontario Originally published Mon Nov 28 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A judge on B.C.'s Supreme Court issued a fair and reasoned assessment this week about the threat polygamy poses to this country. After hearing months of testimony, Chief Justice Robert Bauman concluded that the problems caused by polygamy outweigh the right an individual may claim to enter into a polygamous relationship. Marriage, according to B.C.'s chief justice, should always be between two and only two people. The government of British Columbia had asked Bauman to issue a judgment on the federal law that has banned polygamy for 121 years. Bauman found it to be constitutional. The B.C. government requested this opinion because it has had difficulty deciding how to respond to two polygamous groups in the province that are affiliated with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Finally, in 2009, the government laid charges against Winston Blackmore and Jim Oler, spiritual heads of the two groups in Bountiful, a settlement in southeastern British Columbia. But after that happened, a judge tossed the charges out, not on the merits of the case but because of the way the province chose its prosecutors. The judge said the province violated the rights of the accused men. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy Ban Upheld in Canada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By DARRYL GREER Courthouse News Service - Pasadena, California Originally published Monday, November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER, B.C. (CN) - After years of uncertainty, British Columbia's Supreme Court upheld Canada's criminal ban on polygamy, finding that while the law does infringe upon religious freedoms, it is justified to prevent the significant harms polygamy inflicts upon society. Chief Justice Robert Bauman wrote that he based his lengthy ruling on "the most comprehensive judicial record on the subject ever produced." He concluded that the "case is essentially about harm; more specifically, Parliament's reasoned apprehension of harm arising out of the practice of polygamy. This includes harm to women, to children, to society and to the institution of monogamous marriage." Bauman found that the law was justified because "(w)omen in polygamous relationships are at an elevated risk of physical and psychological harm," and children "suffer more emotional, behavioural and physical problems, as well as lower educational achievement than children in monogamous families." Bauman found that young girls frequently enter into polygamous marriages with much older men and face health risks from early sexual activity and pregnancy, while young men are often forced out of polygamous communities to reduce competition for wives. And Bauman concluded that children are harmed by being exposed to "harmful gender stereotypes" in polygamous households. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ban sharia law | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Nancy Mereska The Calgary Herald Originally published November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Re: "Polygamy costs society in many ways," Susan Martinuk, Opinion, Nov. 25.
Polygamous cultures produce fatherless societies that are subject to poverty and little hope for the future. The "race" riots of France in 2010 were largely due to problems with Muslim polygamy; as were the riots recently in London. Trophy brides are female citizens of western countries who fall in love with and marry Muslim men. They are housed in apartments and left, when the men go to their home countries to marry proper Muslim women, who are approved by their families. Trophy brides live in poverty, seeing their husbands very few times a year, usually long enough to get pregnant. The children grow up not knowing their fathers. They form gangs and trouble brews. Some European countries have allowed sharia law into their marriage statutes. This does not help a trophy bride, if she wants to opt out of a Muslim marriage. Trophy brides never meet their Muslim in-laws. I believe polygamy is the biggest threat to western civilization as we know it. Sharia law must never be implemented in any province in Canada. Nancy Mereska, Two Hills Nancy Mereska is president of Stop Polygamy in Canada | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy ruling should trouble feminists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Bev Baines Toronto Star Originally published Mon Nov 28 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In deciding that polygamy should remain a crime, B.C. Chief Justice Robert Bauman might think he plays to a feminist audience by repeatedly stressing that the purpose of the prohibition is to protect women and children. Yet he renders a decision that is not feminist either in its reasoning or in its outcome. We need only examine three features of his decision — his assessment of the evidence, his analysis of the law's purpose, and his approach to the government's justification for infringing freedom of religion — to understand its feminist deficit. The longest part of the chief justice's decision is devoted to his assessment of the evidence. The B.C. government in adopting the Constitutional Question Act in 1996 permitted anything and everything to be admitted as evidence because the reference case is heard at the trial rather than appellate level. Thus he heard evidence on polygamy's history from Greco-Roman times to the present and on the extent of its global pervasiveness. He admitted psychological studies, a literature review, statistical analysis, religious studies, and international legal authorities. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| We all have a stake in the polygamy case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Aidan Johnson The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Monday, Nov. 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy and gay marriage are importantly different, the B.C. Supreme Court has said. "The alarmist view expressed by some that the recognition of the legitimacy of same-sex marriage will lead to the legitimization of polygamy misses the whole point," B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman wrote in upholding the polygamy ban last week. Plural marriage is full of "harm," he says, but gay marriage is not. The judge is very right. Polygamy has many victims. It often imprisons people in marriages based on sexist rules. It reinforces religious fundamentalism in many cases. Same-sex marriage, by contrast, gives freedom to gays, and arguably to straights as well. It is fundamentalists' worst nightmare. But the judge's ruling does not go far enough in countering the homophobic myth, still prevalent, that a road to tolerance for polygamy has been paved by good gay intentions. When Canada debated same-sex marriage, we heard regularly that gay unions would lead to legalized plural marriage. It is worth considering the Western histories of the three family structures woven through the polygamy debate: gay marriage, straight marriage, and polygamy itself. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nielsen allowed to back out of plea deal, granted jury trial | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard Times Originally published November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — A former president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints has renounced a plea deal he had entered and is now set to go to trial for three charges of felony bigamy. Wendell Loy Nielsen, 71, entered pleas of no contest in October and was sentenced to 10 years probation. He subsequently asked 51st District Judge Barbara Walther to change the conditions of his probation, but she refused, so on Monday Nielsen asked to withdraw his plea and stand trial, and Walther granted that request. "This court does not negotiate terms and conditions of probation," Walther said. His trial is set for Jan. 23, and he has a final pretrial scheduled for Dec. 20, where issues such as venue may be decided. One probation condition Nielsen wanted modified was to allow contact with more people so that he could go to Colorado and live with his son, his Austin attorney David Botsford said. Nielsen had planned to serve out his probation sentence in Colorado, but Colorado officials rejected his proposal to move there. Botsford said he believed the number of people with whom Nielsen is prohibited contact may have been seen by Colorado as an excessive administrative burden. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jeremy Johnson starts to fight back | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Businessman charged with mail fraud starts anti-FTC website after another arrest | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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David DeMille The Spectrum Originally published November 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - Police arrested St. George businessman Jeremy Johnson late Sunday on a warrant pertaining to year-old check fraud charges out of Nevada, an act Johnson is calling a "hostile" action perpetrated by the Federal Trade Commission. Hurricane police stopped Johnson after a call indicating he was driving a vehicle that did not belong to him, said Nancy Perkins, HPD spokesperson. Officers confirmed with the owner of the vehicle that Johnson had permission to drive it, but during a routine check they found the outstanding warrant, which was issued Oct. 20 out of the Clark County District Attorney's Office. Johnson, already battling a mail fraud charge from the U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah and facing allegations from the FTC that he operated a massive illegal Internet enterprise, was booked on $112,150 bail. The check fraud charge originated from checks written before a federal court judge froze Johnson's assets in January, according to a press release issued on a website Johnson launched Monday titled www.evilftc.com. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jeremy Johnson arrested for allegedly writing bad $100K checks at Vegas casino | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dennis Romboy Deseret News Originally published Monday, Nov. 28, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HURRICANE — Indicted St. George businessman Jeremy Johnson spent several hours in jail Sunday after being arrested on a warrant for allegedly writing bad checks for more than $100,000 at a Las Vegas casino. Johnson says the arrest is "self-fulfilled prophesy" related to the Federal Trade Commission fraud case pending against him. "There was plenty of money to cover all the checks written on the accounts. The government decided to bounce them not me. They are very angry with me at the moment so this is their retaliation. They badly want me back in jail where I can't defend myself in the case," he wrote in an email to the Deseret News. Hurricane police stopped Johnson after receiving information he was driving a vehicle that did not belong to him. Officers contacted the owner who told them he had given Johnson permission to drive the vehicle, said Hurricane police spokeswoman Nancy Perkins. During the traffic stop, police ran a routine check on Johnson, 35, and found an outstanding warrant from Nevada, she said. Officers booked Johnson into the Washington County Jail just after 5 p.m. on the third-degree felony theft warrant, which carried a cash-only bail of $112,150, jail records show. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy ruling revisited: Judge takes swipe at 'alarmist' views of gay 'marriage' opponents | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Peter Baklinski News Lifesite - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Tue Nov 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER, British Columbia, November 29, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – While true marriage advocates are celebrating a recent decision upholding Canada's 121-year-old ban on polygamy, they are less thrilled by the fact that in his decision the judge in the case took a swipe at what he called the "alarmist view" that the legalization of homosexual 'marriage' would lead to the legitimization of polygamy. True-marriage advocates have long maintained that Canada's 2005 redefinition of marriage to include homosexual couples would pave the way for any kind of sexual union to be legally called marriage, including polygamy. But Chief Justice Robert Bauman criticized this view for "miss[ing] the whole point." "Committed same-sex relationships celebrate all of the values we seek to preserve and advance in monogamous marriage," he said, adding that the "doctrinal underpinnings of monogamous same-sex marriage are indistinguishable from those of heterosexual marriage." But Dave Quist, Executive Director of the Institute of Marriage and Family Canada, told LifeSiteNews that he disagrees with the judge's logic, saying that he is not "familiar with any social science research" that would back up the assertion that gay "marriage" and true marriage are essentially the same. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Report news; don't hold an agenda | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Opinion The Spectrum Originally published November 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I was shocked and disappointed to read Thursday's article "Former FLDS agent guilty." Although I participated in this hearing as Mr. Jessop's attorney and found the hearing to be uneventful, The Spectrum managed to turn a mundane hearing into a sensational and action-packed event, using bold descriptions such as "guilty" and "convicted," even though the hearing was civil in nature - not criminal. I believe the article was irresponsible for several reasons. If readers were to merely glance at the title and subtitle of the article, they would take away that Mr. Jessop was convicted and found guilty of some crime. However, if one were to thoroughly scour Title 76 of the Utah Criminal Code, Mr. Jessop's offense is not found, in that there was no criminal offense. Perhaps more outrageous is the statement that no "sentencing date" had yet been set. Of course no sentencing date has been set because there's not going to be a sentencing date. If there's no crime, there's no need for a sentencing date. The article wrongly states that the judge "did not declare a penalty." In June, Mr. Jessop inadvertently missed a hearing in this matter, by going to the wrong courtroom. By the time Mr. Jessop realized he was in the wrong courtroom, he had missed his hearing, which by private investigator Sam Brower's own account lasted less than 60 seconds. Thus, Mr. Jessop's penalty for his error is to pay some of Mr. Brower's attorney's fees incurred, which Mr. Jessop believes to be a fair resolution to this matter. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jeremy Johnson fights fraud allegations with website targeting 'evil' FTC | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dennis Romboy Deseret News Originally published Wednesday, Nov. 30 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE — A St. George businessman has taken to familiar turf to fight accusations of fraud: the Internet. One-time multimillionaire Jeremy Johnson went on the offensive against what he sees as "dirty deeds by big government" with a website called evilftc.com where he rails against the Federal Trade Commission investigation of his company I Works. He targets specific FTC attorneys and a federal prosecutor with phrases such as "he missed the class on constitutional rights in law school." He also uses a photo of Mike Myers' character Dr. Evil as a stand-in for one federal lawyer. On the site, Johnson posts email exchanges between himself and FTC attorneys, court transcripts and inflammatory rhetoric. He has also set up Twitter and Facebook accounts. "I and the other defendants in this case have decided that we will no longer remain silent and let you mislead the media with your lies and deceit," he wrote in a recent email to an FTC attorney. "We are compiling documentation to prove that we are innocent of your allegations." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jeremy Johnson Raises More Questions in Amended Complaint Against Court Appointed Receiver | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Morgan Skinner KCSG News KCSG Television - St. George, Utah Originally published November 30, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (St. George, UT) – Southern Utah business entrepreneur Jeremy Johnson amended his complaint last week filed against the court appointed Receiver Rob Evans & Associates in Fifth District Court at St. George on October 14, 2011. In the amended complaint, Evans is accused of theft, theft by deception, and breach of fiduciary duty as the Receiver in the Federal Trade Commission federal court case against Johnson, nine other co-defendants, iWorks and affiliated companies. Johnson is accused of using negative option marketing to bilk consumers of millions of dollars. So far, the Federal Trade Commission has not proven its allegations although it did convinced a federal judge to issue a court order seizing the assets of iWorks and affiliated companies charging the defendants with illegal online marketing activity. This dispute arises from the Receiver's seizure of personal property exempted from this Court’s Preliminary Injunction, the sale of Jeremy Johnson’s assets at auction for substantially less than their value, and for Evans' failure to maintain property. Complaint Evans filed an Emergency Motion asking the court to compell Johnson to dismiss his state lawsuit against the Receiver claiming Johnson could not file a lawsuit against the Receiver without permission of the court. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Jeremy Johnson's First Amended Complaint regarding the seizure of his property, filed in the Utah Fifth District Court November 22, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Jeremy Johnson's Objection to Receiver's Emergency Motion for Order Compelling Compliance regarding the seizure of his property, filed in the U.S District Court of Nevada November 22, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Les Leyne: Polygamy battle still in early rounds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Les Leyne Opinion Victoria Times Colonist Originally published November 30, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| One part of Justice Robert Bauman's reference ruling on polygamy that escaped much notice was the venue in which it was delivered. It was the B.C. Supreme Court. Provincial reference cases - where a government asks a court for a constitutional ruling - usually go to appeal courts, where the issue is decided on the basis of legal arguments. But the government took the unprecedented step of asking the lower court for a ruling, because evidence could be heard there. There are only two provinces in Canada where trial-level references are allowed. And the provision has never been used before in either one. The thinking was that putting the narrow, purely legal question of whether the century-old antipolygamy law offends the Charter of Rights to the appeal court could easily result in an affirmative ruling: Yes, it does. That wasn't what the government wanted. The prohibition on polygamy could be upheld if it was found to cause harm, because that would override the constitutional rights. But to find harm, they had to have a trial. So instead of referring it to the appeal court for an opinion, the government asked the Supreme Court for a decision, and effectively put polygamy on trial. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy in Canada: a case of double standards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A Canadian judge has defended monogamy as a key principle of western civilisation. How does that sit with gay marriage laws? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Neil Addison The Guardian - London, England Originally published Wednesday 30 November 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Judges in Canada do not normally find their judgments reported around the world, but chief justice Bauman of the British Columbia supreme court has managed it with section 293 of the Criminal Code of Canada, which deals with the legality of a Canadian law making polygamy a criminal offence. The issue here is this: how does a self-consciously modern, liberal society continue to criminalise a form of marriage that has existed throughout the world for millennia, when it has at the same time legalised a completely new form of marriage between same-sex couples? Prior to large-scale postwar Muslim immigration the only real experience of polygamy in Europe and North America was with Mormons, who practiced polygamy (aka plural marriage), until it was banned by the mainstream Mormon church in 1890. Since 1890, groups of fundamentalist Mormons have continued the practice in isolated towns, one of which is Bountiful in southern British Columbia. When the Canadian police eventually decided to prosecute two self-appointed Mormon bishops for polygamy, the question was raised whether the law against polygamy was legal under the Canadian charter of rights and fundamental freedoms – a part of the Canadian constitution which in large parts follows the wording of the European convention on human rights. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy ruling a complex issue | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Hannah Wright Opinion Vanderhoof Omineca Express Originally published November 30, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous marriages has become a hot talking point in Vanderhoof as in so many communities across country and province. It may well end up being overruled by the Supreme Court of Canada some way down the line. Polygamy is often associated with Mormon groups, a very few of whom adhere to the practice although the Church of Latter Day Saints officially rejected Polygamy over 100 years ago. But the growth of multi-ethnic societies has also made it something of a live issue. In our "wester" cultures monogamous marriage between a man and a woman is still regarded as the norm and is vigorously defended. Many have felt greatly threatened by changes in law and practice relating to a general liberalization - in relation to gay and lesbian relationships for example. Polygamy, albeit rare, is feared as a further undermining of that institution of marriage that is seen as a bedrock of family, community and national life. This editorial is not a suitable place to address the complex specifics of the issue of polygamy and we have heard much of the evidence on either side. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Anti-polygamy group delighted with ruling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Ken Alexander 100 Mile House Free Press - Mile House, BC Originally published November 30, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| After lengthy British Columbia Supreme Court hearings into the constitutionality of the Canada's criminal prohibition of polygamy, Chief Justice Robert Bauman has upheld Section 193 of the Criminal Code of Canada, ruling that multiple marriages are illegal. In his 300-page ruling, he found the potential harm to women and children involved in multiple marriages to one man outweighs an infringement on religious freedom. Much of this issue revolves around Bountiful, a polygamous community in southwestern B.C. near the Canada/United States border. The isolated community belongs to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter-day Saints (FLDS Church). In 2009, charges were dismissed against two of the community's leaders, who had been charged for having multiple wives. The response from anti-polygamy group, Bountiful Roundtable, has been swift and the membership is delighted with the decision. The members of the Bountiful Roundtable, an ad hoc committee consisting of representatives from concerned women's groups and individuals, are extremely gratified to learn of the decision of Mr. Justice Bauman regarding the polygamy law, said co-chairs Maureen Johnston and Gwen Smith. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| So, what is a marriage? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Kate Heartfield The Ottawa Citizen Originally published December 1, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Those who celebrate a ruling upholding Canada's polygamy laws haven't noticed it makes nonsense of state-sanctioned marriage, Kate Heartfield writes. Social conservatives - the people who want to protect the institution of marriage - should be enraged about last week's court decision on polygamy. They've been focusing on the fact that the B.C. Supreme Court judge said the law against polygamy is constitutional. They haven't noticed the judge also decided there's nothing special about state-sanctioned marriage. Nobody's paid much attention to this aspect of the ruling, which is odd, given how charged the debate about samesex, state-sanctioned marriage was a few years ago. Before last week, deciding who was married and who wasn't was fairly simple. If you followed the rules about licences and banns and solemnization - set out in legislation such as Ontario's Marriage Act - you could get a certificate saying you were married. If you didn't, you were common-law. It didn't matter how long you'd lived together, how you set up your household, how you felt, or whether you held hands on the beach and called it a handfasting ceremony. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS polygamy court battle in the Great White North | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Sarah Kramer News Blog Salt Lake City Weekly Originally published December 1, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What brings feminists, free-love advocates and fundamentalists together? Last week in Vancouver, British Columbia, it was good old-fashioned polygamy. In a highly anticipated decision from the Supreme Court of B.C., Chief Justice Robert Bauman declared that while the ban on polygamy does violate Canadians' religious freedom, the ill effects of polygamy are so great that it is in the Canadian government's interest to uphold the section of the Criminal Code outlawing it. Counsel to B.C. Attorney General Craig Jones (pictured) said the opinion was of "strong precedential value" for the future of polygamy in Canada. The B.C. government asked for an opinion on the constitutionality of the polygamy ban to avoid failure in its attempts to prosecute James Marion Oler, the Warren Jeffs-appointed bishop of Bountiful, Utah,'s FLDS population, and his rival Winston Blackmore. Each of the two men claim about half of Bountiful's 1,000 residents as followers. Since 1994, attempts to prosecute individuals in Bountiful have been thwarted by lack of evidence, lack of interest or, most recently, the uncertainty surrounding the constraints on religious freedom. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Court ruling clears the way to prosecute polygamists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Nancy Mereska Vancouver Sun Originally published December 2, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Over the years, we have generated thousands of letters of frustration to authorities in B.C. decrying the unbelievable number and types of harm perpetrated upon the Canadian citizens of Bountiful.
All under the guise of "religious freedom." Physical, emotional, psychological, mental, sexual, tortuous harm. Our most sincere thanks go to Chief Justice Robert Bauman for emphatically ruling that polygamy is a crime, it is harm. Do we now need to generate thousands more letters to beg B.C. authorities to act? Nancy Mereska President, Stop Polygamy in Canada Society Two Hills, Alta. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jeremy Johnson strikes back at accusers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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David DeMille The Spectrum Originally published December 3, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - Facing allegations of fraud, St. George businessman Jeremy Johnson has gone on the offensive after spending three months in jail and losing assets to federal seizure. Taking to the Internet this week with a website that targets the Federal Trade Commission and "dirty deeds by big government," the former multi-millionaire is accusing officials within the agency of lying about their interactions with him and trying to bully him into signing a settlement. The FTC did not issue a response to the website. FTC spokesman Frank Dorman said via email that the agency does not comment on pending litigation. The FTC alleges Johnson used a complex web of Internet sites, shell companies and accounting tricks to defraud thousands of customers out of more than $270 million during the past decade, freezing his assets and selling some of the property at auction. He also faces a criminal count of mail fraud stemming from CDs that were sent out as part of his Internet businesses. Through it all, Johnson is maintaining that he is innocent of all charges, pleading not guilty in a criminal case and demanding a speedy trial, claiming he can prove the government's allegations are false. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Man seeks custody of kids from FLDS members | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kevin Jenkins The Spectrum Originally published December 3, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - A former member of the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints appeared in 5th District Court on Friday for a hearing on his efforts to regain custody of his children from church members. Lorin Holm of Colorado City filed the civil lawsuit in September seeking unspecified damages and sole custody of his nine children, who remained in the care of their mothers when Holm was expelled from the church in January by the faith's prophet, Warren Jeffs, according to documents filed with the court. Jeffs is serving a life sentence in a Texas prison after being found guilty earlier this year of child sexual assault. Holm's civil complaint filed with the court claims that it is a common practice for leaders of the polygamous church, such as Jeffs, to marry underage girls to older men in the church, and that he fears the same will happen to his daughters, who are ages 2 to 17. Jeffs' criminal conviction stemmed from evidence he had married minors and had sexual relations with them, and a dozen other church leaders have been convicted in Texas on similar charges during the past year. Friday's hearing followed a motion asking Judge James Shumate to recognize the evidence produced during Jeffs' Texas trial as having been authenticated for court purposes by Texas authorities, in an attempt to avoid the costs of bringing Texas rangers to Utah to authenticate the evidence in person, said Holm's attorney, Roger Hoole. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy in Canada: Justifiably not Tolerated | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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FORUM JURIST - University of Pittsburgh School of Law - Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Originally published December 3, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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JURIST Guest Columnist Nicholas Bala of Queen's University Faculty of Law says the recent ruling in British Columbia holding that Canada's criminal prohibition of polygamy is constitutionally justified despite violating the guarantee of freedom of religion is strong and should prevent the spread of polygamy in Canada...
The recent ruling of Chief Justice Robert Bauman of the Supreme Court of British Columbia in the Polygamy Reference offers the world's most comprehensive judicial treatment to date of the legal status of polygamy. Bauman concluded that Canada's criminal prohibition on polygamy is a violation of the guarantee of freedom of religion in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, but accepted that this is constitutionally justified as a reasonable limitation intended to prevent harm to women, children and society. This is a welcome ruling that, if upheld, should prevent the spread of polygamy in Canada. The decision is significant not only with regard to polygamy, but also for the way that it addresses issues related to the scope of religious freedom and the definition of familial relationships, most notably same-sex marriage. A major bonus for scholars interested in polygamy is that all the extensive expert reports, articles and affidavits filed in the case, as well as significant portions of the transcripts, have been made available online. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy hurts everyone | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Andayani Pratiwi The Calgary Herald Originally published December 5, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Re: "B.C. Supreme Court upholds polygamy law; Practice hurts women, children, says judge," Nov. 24, and "Understanding sharia," Letter, Dec. 1.
Atifa Ahmed said: "In Islam, multiple wives are only permitted under special circumstances, with the conditions that husbands must be able to provide equally for the wives and children, financially, emotionally and otherwise." I found this statement is simplistic, immature and unrealistic, not to mention inhuman. This statement assumes that financial and emotional needs of human beings (wives and children) are quantifiable. How can you measure "equal" in this case? By giving equal "conjugal visits" and pocket money? We are talking about human beings, not cattle or property. It also assumes that the husband will have the same strong financial power forever, and ignores the impact of polygamy on the whole nation. It is so unfortunate that Muslims in Canada, especially woman like Ahmed, still justify this disgusting practice, even under "special circumstances." I agree with Justice Robert Baumann: There is no such thing as good polygamy. Andayani Pratiwi, Calgary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy's degrading to women – end of story | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Lysiane Gagnon The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Monday, Dec. 05, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I was surprised and shocked by the criticisms levelled at the B.C. Supreme Courtss decision to uphold the law banning polygamy. Some critics saw this judgment as intruding on individual rights to liberty and privacy. Others saw it as a moral condemnation of unconventional unions and chastised Chief Justice Robert Bauman for elevating monogamous marriage to a "fundamental value." "What happened to swingers? What happened to people who are adulterous?" asked one academic. Others feared the ruling would lead to a return of the ban on gay marriages. These assertions are ludicrous. The heart of the matter is whether polygamy respects the principle of equality between men and women – and it clearly doesn't. Polygamy must be banned not because it is an "unconventional" practice, but because it is inherently degrading to women. Gays or heterosexuals who exchange marriage vows are equal partners. Adultery involves no inequality at all: In Canada, married women are as free as married men to take a lover. Women can freely engage in various unconventional practices such as partner-swapping or group sex. Divorce and remarriage are accessible to women as well as men. Even though serious abuse can happen in all forms of sexual unions, including monogamous marriages, polygamy is a very specific case – the only one that is per se rooted in the inequality of women. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Safety Net needs host families for polygamous youths | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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David DeMille The Spectrum Originally published December 5, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - Young people leaving the polygamous communities in and around Southern Utah often come out with no place to live and nothing but the clothes on their backs. That's why they need help from local families that are willing to take them in, said Robert Hawkes, a St. George resident who has an 18-year-old living with him these days and has taken in two others in previous years. "I suspect there would be quite a few more kids who would come out if they had a place to go," Hawkes said Sunday, saying the experience is rewarding for both the host families and the youths. Two of those who have stayed with him have been able to get their GED diplomas, and the 18-year-old living with him now is attending Dixie State College, he said. "It's really needed for kids to come out and have guidance and love," he said. "I think that's what everybody needs." Filling that need has been the goal of Safety Net, a group administered by the Family Support Center to improve access to social services and community resources for those leaving polygamous homes. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Purge of nonbelievers under way in FLDS towns | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By John Hollenhorst Deseret News Originally published Monday, Dec. 5 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HILDALE, Utah — A new crackdown on followers of Warren Jeffs by his own lieutenants and a ban on everyday items such as children's toys have triggered turmoil in the FLDS community. Former members of the group say a large-scale purge is under way in the twin towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz. Many followers of the imprisoned polygamist leader are being forced out, and many others are said to be leaving voluntarily because they're disturbed by what's going on. "A lot of people are scared. A lot of people are just getting tired," said former FLDS member Isaac Wyler. Among the new edicts, according to Wyler, is a ban on children's toys. "Also, they have been told to get rid of their bicycles and trampolines," he said. Observers say it's part of a program to cleanse and purify FLDS members before a Dec. 31 deadline. FLDS faithful reportedly have to profess their loyalty to Jeffs and to show they're obeying his moral edicts. If they don't do so by the end of the year, they're out. Attempts to reach FLDS leaders for a statement were unsuccessful. Jeffs, who was sentenced in November to seven years in prison for bigamy and child sex assault, reportedly is still pulling the strings from his cell in Texas. Former members say his edicts are passed on through phone calls to FLDS leaders. His brother, Lyle Jeffs, appears to be the most powerful FLDS leader outside of prison. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jeffs increases demands on followers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Members told to give up toys, pets, ATVs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 6, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — Warren Jeffs is tightening his grip on the polygamist group he leads as "prophet" while he is in prison, demanding people abandon amenities such as toys, pets and recreational vehicles to give more money to their church, possibly to support the sect's massive ranch in Texas, a sect member said. Members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in the twin border cities of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., are being threatened with excommunication, potentially losing their family and property, if they do not follow through. "Because of the lack of resources in Texas, he is trying to mandate other communities turn in their resources," said Willie Jessop, an FLDS member who is not loyal to Jeffs. Jeffs is in a Texas prison serving a sentence of life plus 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting two girls ages 12 and 15. That fact isn't known to the vast majority of Jeffs' followers, Jessop said. "The greatest part of the cover-up is no access to any outside communication to expose their minds to what they're sustaining," Jessop said. "Ninety-eight percent don't know what he was actually sentenced to prison for doing." FLDS members aren't being allowed to have things like bicycles, ATVs, trampolines or toys. There is no Internet access for faithful followers of Jeffs, and pets, or any animals that don't bring monetary gain, are forbidden, Jessop said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| County commissioners receive FLDS letters warning of destruction | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 6, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — Tom Green County Precinct 1 County Commissioner Ralph Hoelscher just finished an hourlong Commissioners Court meeting — listening to road construction reports and a property and safety disagreement among a few neighbors — when he read a letter about the destruction of the United States. The letter came from the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a purported revelation from God to the FLDS leader and "prophet" Warren Jeffs. Jeffs is in prison in Palestine, Texas, serving a sentence of life plus 20 years for sexually assaulting girls ages 12 and 15 years old. "There shall be a complete besom of destructive power come forth," the letter states. The letter details that the sea will be heaving beyond its bounds, burying and washing away cities, shaking the earth. The cleansing will allow God to carry out his work in North and South America, the letter purports. "We'll just have to wait and see," Hoelscher said. Commissioners received three letters, dated Oct. 31, Nov. 1 and Nov. 12. The Nov. 12 states that the "most heinous crime" is the "murder of unborn children." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Judge holds firm on $5.5M FLDS debt settlement | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Associated Press The Spectrum Originally published December 6, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY — A judge won't reconsider an order directing the state of Utah to pay more than $5.5 million in debts owed by a communal trust once run by imprisoned polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs. The money is owned to a court-appointed accountant managing the trust, and others hired for trust-related business. The Utah courts seized the trust in 2005 amid allegations of mismanagement by Jeffs and other Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints leaders. The $114 million trust holds the land and homes of Jeffs' followers. The Utah Attorney General's Office asked for a reconsideration of the August order last week. It was denied by the judge Friday. State attorneys contend taxpayers aren't responsible because the state acted in good faith when taking over the trust. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Mormon Misconception | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| the church of latter day saints' unusual place in pop culture | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Charlotte Murtishaw The Eye Columbia Spectator - Columbia College - New York, NY Originally published December 8, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Indigenous American religious movements and successful entertainment ventures may have more in common than one might think. HBO's well received Big Love has been nominated for Golden Globes and Emmys since its debut in 2006. Sister Wives, a TLC-produced reality show about the polygamist Brown family, drew roughly 2.5 million viewers in 2010. Then, of course, came the improbable success of the South Park writers-helmed Book of Mormon on Broadway, named after the religious text Mark Twain deemed "chloroform in print." Oddly, Mormonism has become a pop culture phenomenon. Despite the cheery and squeaky clean persona the church's members often try to convey, the sect's church doctrine and pebbled past have made it a fixture of fascination to the country at large over the past several years, and beleaguered the church with a public image disparate from its proclaimed identity. Still, the mythology about Mormonism persists. Most recently, in an entirely new arena: opera. Dark Sisters is a modern American opera sponsored by the Gotham Chamber Opera and Music-Theater Group that ran from Nov. 9-19 at John Jay College. "Very immediately, the idea of focusing on a polygamous family came to me," composer Nico Muhly, CC '02, says. "It was something I had been thinking about for several years." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Man convicted of molesting daughters gets 14 years | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Las Vegas Review-Journal Originally published December 10, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A Colorado City, Ariz., man convicted of molesting his three young daughters was given a 14-year prison sentence Friday. Henry Cooke, 40, pleaded guilty to child molestation and multiple counts of attempted child molestation. Court records reveal that the girls' mother contacted authorities in May when her 11-year-old daughter indicated she had been touched by Cooke in an improper manner. Documents indicate that the woman's 13 and 14-year-old daughters described similar physical contact with their father. Cooke will serve lifetime probation after he's released. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Father sentenced in molestation case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Man resident of polygamous community | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dave Hawkins Special to the Standard-Times San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 13, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| KINGMAN, Ariz. — It would be a mistake to link all sex crimes committed in Colorado City, Ariz., to the polygamous culture that dominates the Northern Arizona community, the original home of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Neither polygamy nor the FLDS were mentioned in the various pleadings and hearings that led to Friday's resolution of the case against a Colorado City man who molested his three young daughters and a teenage boy prosecuted in a case involving his preteen sisters. In fact the prosecutor and defense attorney involved in the case both said they didn't know if the defendant had multiple wives or if he is an FLDS member. Court records reveal the man's wife contacted authorities in May when her 11-year-old daughter indicated she had been touched by her father and that various sexual activities short of intercourse had transpired. When questioned by their mother, her 13- and 14-year-old daughters described similar transgressions. The man, 40, pleaded guilty to child molestation and two counts each of attempted child molestation through a plea agreement that dismissed more serious charges and punishment possibilities. Court records indicate that most of the offenses took place in the family home. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Did polygamy case judge miss the point? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Letters Barriere Star Journal Originally published December 12, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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To the editor;
B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman In his 335-page ruling on the validity of the country’s anti-polygamy law, failed to separate the Charter from the criminal code. Our freedom of association is a basic Charter right. That includes the right to associate with individuals or groups of people who may or may not share religious beliefs or convictions. His ruling to uphold the law against polygamy is a violation of the Charter. The ruling that protection of women and children against abuse overrides the Charter rights is also a bit abstract. The Charter is an integral part of the Constitution, while the Criminal Code is a federal Statute enacted by Parliament. The intent of the Criminal Code is to protect women and children against criminal acts, such as illegal confinement, physical and emotional abuse, forcing children into marriage, and the list goes on. It's difficult to imagine how that in any way could conflict with the Charter. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mounties head to Texas in polygamy probe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jill Bennett QMI Agency Toronto Sun Originally published Monday, December 12, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - RCMP officers from B.C. are in Texas this week to investigate claims underaged girls were trafficked back and forth between followers of polygamist leader Warren Jeffs and the Bountiful Community in B.C. The allegations came to light while authorities in Texas were investigating Jeffs, who was convicted of sexually assaulting two of his young wives. "We may have had crimes committed within our jurisdiction in Canada. I mean, Canadian girls going stateside and American girls coming here," RCMP Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said. Officers plan to be in Texas until Friday. See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| More letters from FLDS received | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 13, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — Tom Green County commissioners have received a second set of documents in the mail from the polygamist Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Two documents came in a single letter to Precinct 2 Commissioner Aubrey DeCordova. Precinct 3 Commissioner Steve Floyd said he received more letters a couple of days ago. One document purports to be a revelation from Jesus Christ to FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, who is in prison for life plus 20 years for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl. The letter is dated Nov. 13. It is labeled as a "Full Warning" to national leaders and the people of the United States. The letter warns of judgment with sickness and war and mountains covering wicked cities. "Let United States of America leaders repent of their most wicked unholy ways, most of immoral personal way," the letter states. Another document is labeled "Jesus Christ, God Over All, Sendeth a Final Warning to Peoples of Every Land on Earth, to be Heeded Now by All Peoples." The letter warns of judgment and specifically asks for the release of Jeffs and "Merril Jessop," the former FLDS bishop Fredrick Merril Jessop, who has been sentenced to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for performing an underage marriage. The letter also condemns an "apostate witness" who testified in trials against FLDS members, and contains general judgment for all the world. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Warren Jeffs' "Revelations" from prison warning of the destruction of the United States, sent to some Texas Commissioners' offices in early December, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Warren Jeffs' "Revelations" from prison warning of the destruction of the United States, received in Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff's office December 12, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Man gets 14 years in prison for molesting daughters | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Erin Taylor Kingman Daily Miner Originally published December 14, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| KINGMAN - A Colorado City man has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for molesting his three daughters. Henry Cooke, 40, faced anywhere from 10 to 17 years in prison when sentenced by Judge Steven Conn last week after pleading guilty to child molestation and two counts of attempted child molestation as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors. Cooke was arrested in May after police were contacted by his wife, who alleged that their 11-year-old daughter had been molested. Two older daughters, ages 13 and 14, also alleged they had been molested by their father when they were interviewed. "This did not happen to one victim, but to three," said Prosecutor Megan McCoy. She said Cooke's conduct went beyond the line of touching to more predatory acts that occurred over the course of a year and a half. Cooke's lawyer, Shawn Hamp, said Cooke was himself the victim of sexual abuse by an extended family member. Cooke quietly apologized to his family and the court before his sentencing. Cooke also received lifetime probation and will be forced to register as a sex offender after he is released from prison. See mug shot | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS lawyers Seek Remand of Charges Involving Fire District Funds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dave Hawkins KCSG Television - St. George, Utah Originally published December 14, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (Kingman, AZ) - Tucson attorney Mike Piccarreta flooded the Mohave County Courthouse in northwest Arizona with voluminous motions during his representation several years ago of Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints based in Northern Arizona and southern Utah. It appears Piccarreta will do the same in his defense of Jacob Barlow, chief of the Colorado City, Ariz., fire district. Barlow and Colorado City Town Manager David Darger are charged in an indictment alleging more than three dozen criminal offenses involving misappropriation of thousands of fire district dollars. Piccarreta has filed a motion to remand the case back to the grand jury for reconsideration of any possible criminal charges. Piccarreta's 36-page remand motion, and eight more pages of exhibits, alleges Deputy Mohave County attorney James Schoppman blundered his grand jury appearance on the fire district matters. "This grand jury presentment is one of the worst and most biased presentments to a grand jury that counsel has reviewed. Imprecise facts, erroneous facts and inadequate description of the law were used to obtain these indictments," the motion stated. "There was no attempt to conduct a fair and accurate presentment of the law or the facts." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Defending the Undefendable? Canada's Ban on Polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Adam Allouba Opinion Quebecois Libre - Montreal, Quebec Originally published December 15, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marriage laws have been big news for a decade, thanks to the controversy over same-sex marriage. Recently, however, the spotlight has shifted, as a polygamous community in Bountiful, British Columbia has entered the news. Like many other Western countries, Canada makes it illegal to have multiple spouses simultaneously. While over 60 years have passed since a successful prosecution, the Bountiful case has raised the possibility of fresh convictions and has sparked a debate over the law in question. Bountiful was founded after World War II by Mormons opposed to their church's rejection of polygamy, and the practice continues there to this day. As far back as 1992, the BC government opted to do nothing after judging that the courts would strike down anti-polygamy laws on grounds of religious freedom. However, it gradually became impossible to ignore the situation. In 2004, a woman originally "married" at age 15 to a religious leader filed a human rights complaint. In 2005, another religious leader held a "polygamy summit" at which he acknowledged marrying underage girls - then repeated his boasts a year later to Larry King on CNN. In 2007, a special prosecutor was appointed to examine the possibility of bringing charges, which ultimately led to the government referring the issue of the law's constitutionality to the courts. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 'Sister Wives' Stars Ask Judge Not to Block Their Challenge of Utah Bigamy Law | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Associated Press TV - Entertainment Fox News Originally published December 16, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A polygamous family made famous on a reality television show is asking a Utah federal judge not to block their challenge of the state's bigamy law. Kody Brown and wives Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn filed a lawsuit in Salt Lake City's U.S. District Court in July. Oral arguments in the case are set for Friday before U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups. The stars of the TLC show "Sister Wives" said the law is unconstitutional because it prohibits them from living together and criminalizes their private sexual relationships. Under Utah law, people are guilty of bigamy if they have multiple marriage licenses, or if they cohabitate with another consenting adult in a marriage-like relationship. Formerly of Lehi, the Browns and their 17 children moved to Nevada in January after police launched a bigamy investigation. The Browns practice as part of their religious beliefs. Oral arguments in the case are set for Friday in Salt Lake City's U.S. District Court. It's not clear when Waddoups will rule. State prosecutors contend the Browns -- who haven't been charged -- aren't facing any real harm because the state has rarely prosecuted individuals for bigamy without also prosecuting for other crimes, such as underage marriages, sexual abuse or welfare fraud. "They have not been warned that if they do not cease to engage in their polygamous relationships that legal actions will be taken against them," Assistant Utah Attorney General Jerrold S. Jensen has said in court papers asking the judge to dismiss the case. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Judge hears 'Sister Wives' challenge of Utah law | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Proposed legislation would increase statute of limitations for bigamy, change rules for child abuse investigations. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By JENNIFER DOBNER Associated Press AP via Yahoo! UK & Ireland News Originally published December 16, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Attorneys for a polygamous family made famous on a reality television show on Friday asked a Utah federal judge not to block their challenge of the state's bigamy law. Kody Brown and wives Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn filed a lawsuit in Salt Lake City's U.S. District Court in July. The stars of the TLC show "Sister Wives" contend the law is unconstitutional because it violates their right to privacy — prohibiting them from living together and criminalizing their private sexual relationships. Under Utah law, people are guilty of bigamy if they have multiple marriage licenses, or if they cohabitate with another consenting adult in a marriage-like relationship. Any couple of any sex living together in an intimate relationship is considered marriage-like under the law, and such a living arrangement would be considered a felony. Any couple of any sex living together in an intimate relationship could be considered guilty of a felony under the law. Formerly of Lehi, the Browns and their 17 children moved to Nevada in January after police launched a bigamy investigation. The Browns practice polygamy as part of their religious beliefs. U.S. District Court Judge Clark Waddoups heard oral arguments in the case on Friday in Salt Lake City and took the matter under advisement. It's not clear when he will rule. For the case to go forward, the judge must decide the Browns have been harmed by the bigamy law. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 'Sister Wives' stars fight for the right to... polygamy: Is America ready? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Lanford Beard PopWatch Entertainment Weekly Originally published December 16, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Today Kody Brown — star of polygamist reality show Sister Wives — reported to court with his four wives Meri, Janelle, Christine, and Robyn, intending to prove their challenge Utah's polygamy laws. Nearly two years after Big Love's Bill Henrickson ran for Senate expressly to take "The Principle" (a.k.a. polygamy) mainstream, it seems a curious case of life imitating art. We know how things ended for poor Bill, but what of the Browns, whose own series was spun off of Love's popularity? Do they have a chance that their love might be one day accepted by the public? Said the Browns' lawyer, Professor Jonathan Turley, "We believe that this case represents the strongest factual and legal basis for a challenge to the criminalization of polygamy ever filed in the federal courts. We are not demanding the recognition of polygamous marriage. We are only challenging the right of the state to prosecute people for their private relations and demanding equal treatment with other citizens in living their lives according to their own beliefs." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Will Sister Wives Stars Beat Utah's Bigamy Law? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Josh Grossberg and Baker Machado E! Online E! Entertainment Television - Los Angeles, California Originally published December 16, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Kody Brown Bunch is hoping to rewrite the rule books in Utah. The polygamous clan made famous on the TLC hit reality series Sister Wives has asked a federal judge in Utah to continue to let them challenge the state's bigamy laws. Here's what went down today. Lawyers for Brown and his four wives — Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn — offered oral arguments this morning for an hour-and-a-half before U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups, who, according to his clerk, took the case "under advisement" and plans to rule on the matter at an unspecified future date. "The court gave us a fair hearing and we will await his decision," Brown's attorney and George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley tells E! News. "We are committed to pursuing these claims on behalf of the Brown family wherever they take us in the legal system." The family filed a lawsuit in Salt Lake City District Court back in July claiming Utah's bigamy law is unconstitutional because it criminalizes their private sexual relationships and prohibits them from living together. They've told the court they fear being punished by the statute, which they say has caused them irreprable harm and forced them to temporarily move to Nevada. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy and me: Growing up Mormon | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Maggie Rayner Special to The Sun Vancouver Sun Originally published December 16, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| When my family lived in Richmond, a group of Mormon fundamentalists from Bountiful, near Creston, visited our mainstream Mormon congregation extolling the practice of polygamy, also called the principle or plural marriage. They were looking for wives to add to their collections. They targeted families who had young girls. My oldest sister at 16, with blond hair, blue eyes and a blossoming body, was a magnet for the young men and 19-year-old missionaries of the Church. One Sunday after Sunday school, I watched an older man from Bountiful rush over in the parking lot to open our station wagon door for her. He left the wife he had with him struggling to open their car door on her own, a baby on her hip, a diaper bag over her shoulder, and two toddlers clinging to her legs. I was 10 years old. I giggled at his ardour, finding his behaviour ridiculous, while a queasiness roiled in my stomach. My parents weren't swayed by the arguments to take up a polygamous lifestyle and my two sisters and I were saved from the principle. Even so, my mother explained, "Polygamy is a hardship for men." This did not make any sense to me. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Feds to address polygamy in revised newcomer guide | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Tobi Cohen Postmedia News Ottawa Citizen Originally published December 17, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| OTTAWA - Canada is hoping to crack down on polygamous relationships such as the one that's come to light during the sensational Shafia honour killing trial, according to Immigration Minister Jason Kenney who will unveil a revised guide for newcomers early next year that will addresses the issue specifically. In a year-end interview with Postmedia News, Kenney said while polygamy is a concern he raised early on in his mandate, it's one that's been difficult to tackle. "We leave no stone unturned to try to prevent what you might call polygamous immigration marriages, but the problem is that if someone comes to the country on a particular visa and then chooses to enter into say a religious marriage, it's never reported with the state in Canada and they never report it to us as an immigration sponsorship," he said. "It's outside of our system." Immigrants who come to Canada under false pretences are subject to deportation under the Immigration Act, but Kenney said he's not aware of any cases that have been successfully enforced. "Let's be honest. People don't come and tell us that they are living in polygamous marriages. These things are done secretly," he said. "I've heard disturbing anecdotal reports about this sort of thing but we haven't had any hard evidence." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Editorial: Polygamy prosecution team is Texan of the Year finalist | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Editorials Dallas Morning News Originally published December 18, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| There was nothing that could have prepared the Texas Rangers for what they found that morning in April 2008, when they served a search warrant at the Yearning for Zion ranch near Eldorado. The assembled force of a dozen or so Rangers, backed by local police, was woefully thin given the magnitude of what was unfolding before their eyes. There were four times as many people as they had expected in the compound, more than 800 residents, and more than half of them were children. And then they entered the temple. For Maj. Brooks Long, who led the raid, it is the moment that stands out above all others on that momentous day. Prominent in the sanctuary was a bed, with seating nearby, as if for spectators. It was the lair of the polygamist leader, Warren Jeffs. "You know what's happening on that bed — and it's not sleeping," Long, 47, recalled. "That's when the hinges blew off that place." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Breakenridge: Burka restriction only serves to punish victims | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Rob Breakenridge The Calgary Herald Originally published December 19, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| It may well be the case that clear and definable Canadian values exist, but the existence of such values should not be an excuse to intrude into the private lives of citizens. It would hardly be objectionable to suggest that polygamy is counter to Canadian values. The same could be said of the wearing of the Islamic burka or the niqab. However, such observations do not bring us to the conclusion that these practices must then be prohibited. Judging from the national discourse, many Canadians would disagree. Last month, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Robert Bauman issued a ruling declaring Section 293 of the Criminal Code of Canada — the law banning polygamy — to be constitutional. Last week, Immigration and Citizenship Minister Jason Kenney sparked a national debate over the Islamic veil after declaring that those taking the citizenship oath would be forced to show their faces while doing so. A refusal to lift the veil would mean that Canadian citizenship could not be obtained. The decree is quite narrow in that sense — it does not directly affect any other laws or regulations concerning the wearing of the veil. It may be a justified expectation, but at the same time, it may also be a solution in search of a problem. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Feds to address polygamy in revised newcomer guide | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Times & Transcript - Moncton, New Brunswick Originally published Monday December 19th, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| OTTAWA - Canada is hoping to crack down on polygamous relationships, according to Immigration Minister Jason Kenney who will unveil a revised guide for newcomers early next year that will addresses the issue specifically. In a year-end interview with Postmedia News, Kenney said while polygamy is a concern he raised early on in his mandate, it's one that's been difficult to tackle. "We leave no stone unturned to try to prevent what you might call polygamous immigration marriages, but the problem is that if someone comes to the country on a particular visa and then chooses to enter into say a religious marriage, it's never reported with the state in Canada and they never report it to us as an immigration sponsorship," he said. "It's outside of our system." | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous Family Launches Challenge of Utah Law | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By JENNIFER DOBNER Associated Press ABC News Originally published December 20, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY - Reality TV stars Kody Brown and his four wives say they just want one thing: to be left alone. As authorities investigate them for bigamy, the TLC "Sister Wives" family is asking a federal judge to overturn part of Utah's bigamy law because it bans them from living together and criminalizes sexual relationships between unmarried consenting adults. "What they are asking for is the right to structure their own lives, their own family, according to their faith and their beliefs," said Jonathan Turley, their attorney, adding that the lawsuit is about privacy — not polygamy. The case in federal court in Utah, however, could open up the possibility that a way of life for tens of thousands of self-described Mormon fundamentalists could be decriminalized. While all states outlaw bigamy, some like Utah have laws that both prohibit having more than one marriage license at a time and also ban adults from living together and having a sexual relationship. The latter provision could include same-sex couples, unmarried heterosexual couples and those, like the Browns, who do not have licenses but have created within their homes a marriage-like relationship. Turley, a noted constitutional expert, argued that, under previous U.S. Supreme Court rulings, such as one that struck down Texas' sodomy law, private intimate relationships between consenting adults are constitutionally protected. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nielsen bigamy trial set for San Angelo Jan. 24 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bigamy case for Nielsen to be tried Jan. 24 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 20, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — The former president of a polygamy-sanctioning sect will have his bigamy trial in San Angelo come Jan. 24. After a debate on where to hold the bigamy trial of Wendell Loy Nielsen, 51st District Judge Barbara Walther decided at a preliminary hearing Tuesday against the defense suggestion of holding the trial in Irion County and Schleicher County. Instead, she decided it should be held in Tom Green County. "If you look at pure population numbers, it would indicate the court has a better likelihood (of seating a jury) if the trial were held here in Tom Green County," special prosecutor for the state Eric Nichols said. Nielsen, 71, is a former president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He is charged with three counts of third-degree bigamy. The charges will be tried at the same time, meaning the penalties will run concurrently so as to have a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, and a minimum of two years in prison and the possibility of probation. Nielsen had rejected a plea deal he made previously that had gotten him a sentence of 10 years probation, because he didn't like the probation conditions and couldn't get the probation transferred to Colorado, where his son lives. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No appeal in polygamy case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Stephanie Ip By QMI Agency London Free Press - London, Ontario Originally published December 21, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A lawyer who argued to decriminalize polygamy will not be appealing the court's decision to uphold Canada's 120-year-old anti-polygamy law, it was announced Wednesday. "A legal publication suggested recently that (lawyer George Macintosh) had decided to appeal. That report was erroneous," a statement released by his office said. The announcement came as a surprise as many expected Macintosh to appeal the ruling. Previously, the court-appointed amicus curiae – a Latin term meaning impartial advisor – had said if all parties consented, an appeal would be pursued to dispute the constitutionality of certain sections of the law, but not the facts already established in the initial ruling. "The issue wouldn't be whether the conduct complained of is harmful because much of the conduct clearly is harmful," Macintosh said in November following the B.C. Supreme Court ruling. However, attorneys general at federal and provincial levels still have the power to revisit the case in court if they choose. The ruling, issued in late November by Justice Robert Bauman, found polygamy was still harmful to children and women and they far outweighed the religious freedoms of Mormons. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy ruling won't be appealed | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Marc Ellison The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - A court-appointed lawyer will not appeal a B.C. Supreme Court ruling that upheld Canada's ban on polygamy, leaving the federal and provincial attorneys-general only two days to decide what to do next. The decision announced on Wednesday by George Macintosh, who was appointed in the case to argue that Criminal Code provisions prohibiting polygamy are unconstitutional, does not rule out the possibility of further court action – at least not yet. The provincial or federal attorney-general can still ask for a review of the case in the B.C. Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court of Canada if they want to expand the ruling's application to the whole country. But they have to do it soon, because the 30-day period to appeal the Nov. 23 decision expires in two days. In 2009, the B.C. government asked the court for clarification – a process known as a reference – of whether Canada's 121-year-old law against polygamy is consistent with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Chief Justice Bauman ruled that while the ban on the practice infringed some sections of the charter, the criminalization was justified, except for children between the ages of 12 and 17. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS exodus prompts call for 'foster homes' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Ben Winslow FOX 13 News KSTU-TV Originally broadcast December 22, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY - Imprisoned polygamist leader Warren Jeffs has reportedly issued an edict to his followers with a deadline -- renew allegiances to the Fundamentalist LDS Church or be excommunicated. With a Dec. 31 deadline looming, non-profit groups who help those leaving Utah's polygamous communities say an ongoing exodus from the FLDS Church is turning into a "humanitarian crisis," with people walking away with no place to go. "You've got new control where you have to give everything," James Barlow told FOX 13. "And I mean everything." Barlow left the FLDS Church last month after refusing to give his allegiance to Jeffs. Barlow, 19, described being called before Jeffs' brother, Lyle, and asked to confess his sins and be re-baptized into the FLDS Church. Tired of the increasing restrictions on people's lives within the church, Barlow left with the clothes on his back. "I said 'no' and walked out the door," he said. "To come out here and just fall on my head, just not have anything. Nothing... nobody to give me anything, a roof over my head." He wound up at a home in the Salt Lake City area where his sister, Ruth, has been staying. She left the FLDS Church in September after deciding she no longer believed in the faith under Jeffs. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Restraining Order Issued Against FLDS Church Members | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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KUTV Channel 2 News Originally broadcast Thursday, December 22 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (KUTV) SALT LAKE CITY - A 3rd District judge has granted a temporary restraining order against Warren Jeffs and FLDS Church Thursday. The restraining order is intended to keep problems from arising because of new rulings church leader Warren Jeffs issued from jail within the last couple of months. The plaintiff, Richard Holm, filed the complaint saying that Jeffs, Lyle Jeffs and the FLDS Church and several members have tried to take over a Utah school and Holm runs with his brother Thomas Holm after the two fell out of favor with the FLDS Church. The judge granted the restraining order after allegations that members of the FLDS Church have been using the school buildings. Police said they couldn't evict the members occupying the school buildings without a court order. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Citing 'eroded' respect for the court, judge issues restraining order in FLDS school dispute | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Emiley Morgan Deseret News Originally published Thursday, Dec. 22 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY — Fearing that respect for the court has "eroded" among those belonging to the FLDS Church, a 3rd District judge issued a temporary restraining order Thursday that will require members of the polygamous sect and law enforcement to follow its dictates in a property occupancy issue. The ruling came as tensions are reportedly rising in the border towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., because of a deadline church leader Warren Jeffs has reportedly set for church members to prove their loyalty to him. Judge John Paul Kennedy issued the ruling following a hearing in an effort to keep members of the Fundamentalist LDS Church out of a Hildale-area school that was leased to a former sect member. According to a complaint filed Thursday, a number of FLDS members have been occupying the school buildings even though the former member of their faith still holds a valid occupancy agreement. Richard Holm filed the complaint in 3rd District Court Thursday alleging that Jeffs, Lyle Jeffs, the FLDS Church itself and a number of its members have attempted to take over the school, which he runs with his brother, after his brother fell out of favor with those in the church. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Washington County Attorney Brock Belnaps's letter to Marshal Jonathan Roundy regarding enforcing the Occupancy Agreements issued by UEP fiduciary Bruce Wisan, dated December 20, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Richard Holm's Complaint regarding the FLDS taking over the Holm School, filed in the Utah Third District Court December 21, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Richard Holm's Complaint Exhibits regarding the FLDS taking over the Holm School, filed in the Utah Third District Court December 21, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Richard Holm's Motion for Temporary Restraining Order regarding the FLDS taking over the Holm School, filed in the Utah Third District Court December 22, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Judge OK's eviction threat to get tax payments | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jennifer Dobner Associated Press The Spectrum Originally published December 23, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY - A Utah judge approved a plan that calls for the eviction of sect members and others along the Utah-Arizona border unless $2.2 million in back taxes are paid. Third District Judge Denise Lindberg ruled that a court-appointed accountant can threaten eviction to try to get payment from residents of the border towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz. Most of the property in the two cities is owned by the United Effort Plan communal land trust, which was once run by Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Utah took control of the trust in 2005 and appointed Salt Lake City accountant Bruce Wisan as its manager amid allegations of mismanagement by Jeffs. The FLDS has largely refused to cooperate with Wisan, including refusing to pay property taxes directly to him and has instead paid county authorities. Court papers filed by Wisan's attorney, Jeff Shields, show tax delinquencies on 132 land parcels have grown steadily since 2008 and now total $2.2 million. More than $1.6 million is owed to Arizona's Mohave County and more than $535,000 is owed in Utah's Washington County. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Judge Denise Lindberg's Ruling and Order regarding Bruce Wisan's Motion for Guidance on Resolution of Property Tax Crisis, filed in the Utah Third District Court December 14, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No challenges to polygamy law ruling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Global News Global BC - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Friday, December 23, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| An appeals deadline for a case involving polygamy laws expire today, and so far there haven't been any legal challenges. Last month the BC Supreme Court ruled that banning polygamy does not violate a constitutional right to religious freedom. The provincial government has been working on a polygamy ban for more than a year. The legal action comes after concerns about human trafficking and sexual abuse of children surfaced in connection to polygamous communities in southeastern B.C. The lawyer on the opposite side of the case says he does not plan to appeal the judgement. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. has polygamy appeal options: government lawyers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dirk Meissner The Canadian Press CTV British Columbia Originally published Friday Dec. 23, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The B.C. government has several options to take last month's B.C. Supreme Court ruling upholding Canada's ban on polygamy to a higher court to give it more weight, even though one appeal deadline expires on Friday. The Nov. 23 ruling by Justice Robert Bauman was connected to the province's long-running quest to mount legal cases against the leaders of polygamous communities in the southeastern B.C. community of Bountiful. Vancouver lawyer George Macintosh, who was appointed by the government to argue that Canada's Criminal Code provisions outlawing polygamy are unconstitutional, has indicated he won't appeal. Macintosh's 30-day deadline to appeal expires Friday. B.C. Attorney General Shirley Bond issued a statement saying she respects Macintosh's decision not to appeal, but as far as the province goes, the court decision is under review. "Our legal counsel are continuing to review Chief Justice (Robert) Bauman's comprehensive decision to determine how we will proceed from here," said the statement. A legal spokesman with the Ministry of the Attorney General said Thursday the B.C. government, because it won the case, does not have the same time restrictions for an appeal as Macintosh. The B.C. ruling does not apply throughout Canada. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. government ponders taking polygamy ruling to a higher court | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By DOUG WARD Vancouver Sun Originally published December 23, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The B.C. government is still considering whether to take last month's B.C. Supreme Court ruling upholding Canada's ban on polygamy to a higher court to give it more legal heft. Government lawyers are reviewing the judgment by Chief Justice Robert Bauman to determine the government's legal options, Attorney-General Shirley Bond said Friday, in a media statement. Bauman ruled that the criminalization of polygamy is constitutional even though it infringes on some sections of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Vancouver lawyer George Macintosh, who was appointed by Victoria as amicus curiae to argue in court that Canada's prohibition of polygamy is unconstitutional, has decided not to appeal. The 30-day appeal period ended Friday. But the deadline does not apply to any move by the province to refer the judgment to a higher court, said Bond. The attorney-general said that "unlike an appeal there is no deadline imposed in the rules for seeking this further review. "Our legal counsel are continuing to review Chief Justice Bauman's comprehensive decision to determine how we will proceed from here." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Editorial Board's View - FLDS back taxes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Opinion The Spectrum Originally published December 25, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A Salt Lake City judge has given members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and other residents in the border towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., an opportunity that many other people delinquent on their taxes don't receive. They get a full year to pay their bill, which extends back years. Earlier this month, 3rd District Judge Denise Lindberg ruled that owners of the 132 delinquent parcels in the two towns — dominated by the FLDS church, which practices polygamy among its tenets — must pay the $1.6 million they owe to Arizona and the $535,000 they owe to Washington County by the end of 2012 or the land will be sold. Under a plan developed by Bruce Wisan, who was appointed to oversee the United Effort Plan communal trust that actually owns the property, residents who don't pay will be evicted and replaced by other trust beneficiaries who assert they will comply with the rules. Among those rules is an agreement to pay a monthly occupancy fee. Predictably, FLDS supporters object to the plan. The church's attorney, Rod Parker, told The Associated Press he agrees that taxes should be paid, but he believes the ruling violates a ruling from February that found the state's management of the trust was unconstitutional. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Warren Jeffs' October 2, 2011 Revelation from prison received by Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff on December 27, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Buildings go up at YFZ Ranch; complaints filed to TCEQ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 27, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SCHLEICHER COUNTY — A concrete cylinder rises from the polygamist sect's Yearning for Zion Ranch. The construction project is open at the top, where rebar protrudes, and at the bottom are edges that resemble fins on a rocket ship. Elsewhere on the ranch of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an immense building with a semicircle for a floor plan is being built, its walls dwarfing the trucks bringing the supplies to build it. The area of the building is comparable to the temple. The ranch has been busy, even with the leader of the sect, Warren Jeffs, 56, in prison for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl. He is serving a sentence of life plus 20 years. The purpose of the buildings isn't known. Phone calls to the ranch have gone unanswered. The only regular outside presence that has visited the ranch lately has been that of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, which has responded to complaints submitted by Schleicher County neighbors. The TCEQ has received frequent requests to investigate construction matters at the ranch since building began there in 2004. Agents have found problems such as air quality violations related to cement production at the ranch. TCEQ documents reveal long checklists of allegations against the FLDS ranch, including alleged violations such as not properly maintaining logs for water quality, having holes in fences around water storage ponds and having oil leaking on the ground from barrels. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS Imprisoned Leader Warren Jeffs Issues A "Do It Or Else" Edict | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Stella Thurkill KUTV 2News Originally broadcast Tuesday, December 27 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (KUTV) TEXAS - FLDS members have been warned by their imprisoned prophet - Warren Jeffs - that they have four days left to make some major changes or be destroyed. Jeffs - through revelations in prison and subsequent phone calls - has taken away almost all his followers earthly possessions in recent weeks. Now he says if they don't comply with God's latest commands it's over. 2News reporter Stella Thurkill talked with Willy Jessop this evening. Former members of Warren Jeffs' FLDS Church say the imprisoned prophet is sending a type of "do it or else" message to his followers. That edict apparently was delivered from a prison cell sometime over the holiday weekend. His followers allegedly must comply by the end of the year or face being -- what Jeffs calls -- destroyed. According to Willie Jessop, who is no longer a Jeffs' follower, compliance is a multi-step process. Most importantly. "You have to go through a total commitment process. All of your allegiance - totally committed to Warren Jeffs," he said. And then once that happens... "If you then pass that portion, they ask you a whole bunch of questions about your worthiness and whether you're able to abstain from any sort of relations with your family or your wife," he said. Those relationships reportedly cannot happen until Jeffs is released from prison. To hear more, watch 2News at 10pm! | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS must be 'chosen' by year's end or be destroyed, Jeffs says | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By John Hollenhorst KSL-TV Originally broadcast December 27th, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HILDALE -- A "frenzy" of activity has erupted among a polygamist community in southern Utah as imprisoned leader Warren Jeffs has told his followers that they must be "chosen" by the end of the year or be destroyed. According to outside observers, there has been a flurry of church meetings almost daily, a set of mysterious construction projects and widespread re-baptism as thousands of followers react to apparent prophesies of doom from their imprisoned leader. "These people honestly believe that the end is here and that everybody's going to be destroyed within the next few days," said Isaac Wyler, former member of the FLDS church and resident of Colorado City. Observers have growing concerns that Jeffs, acting from prison in Texas, is preparing the FLDS faithful for a dramatic new phase. Some believe the renewed fervor and emphasis on loyalty is a prelude to an exodus of the faithful to an FLDS outpost in another state. "Right now, Warren is prophesying that the end is nigh, that the world's coming to an end at any moment," said Sam Brower, a Cedar City private investigator who has spent years probing the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "They're trying to live up to Warren's predictions and prophesies and trying to prove to him that they're obedient and that they're going to follow his instructions, do whatever he tells them." There have also been concerns that large numbers of people will be kicked out or will leave the group voluntarily, putting stress on social service capabilities in southern Utah. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 'Prophet' Warren Jeffs May Lose Privileges For Preaching From Prison Pulpit | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Cathy Scott Crime Forbes - New York, NY Originally published December 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs, inmate number 08888382 and a self-proclaimed prophet, has been manipulating, controlling and terrorizing a polygamist sect from behind prison walls. But his antics may soon end if a state probe finds his actions to be illegal. Jeffs has given members of the polygamist sect of the FLDS, a fringe Mormon group, an end-of-year deadline to prove their loyalty to him — or else. And this from a man who is serving out a life sentence at the Powledge Unit maximum-security prison near Palestine, Texas, for sexually assaulting two underage girls at an FLDS compound in Texas. How was he able to pull it off? Apparently, via telephone calls. "We went through the phone records and did determine that [Jeffs] made two calls to a family member on Christmas Day," said Michelle Lyons, spokesperson for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. "We're determining whether the person put that phone call on speaker." Jeffs' surprise sermon was delivered from prison during a First Ward church meeting in the small, rural Arizona town of Colorado City near the Utah state line. In his sermon, Jeffs ordered that his followers be "chosen" by December 31 or be destroyed. Jeffs' latest do-or-die edict has sent the FLDS community into a frenzy and launched the state inspection general into investigation mode. Jeffs' errant behavior, Lyons said, "is something we take seriously." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Convicted polygamist leader Warren Jeffs may have violated Texas prison rules with phone calls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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MICHAEL GRACZYK The Associated Press World Breaking News Winnipeg Free Press Winnipeg, Manitoba Originally published December 29 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOUSTON - Texas prison officials are investigating whether convicted polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs violated his telephone privileges with calls to a relative on Christmas Day that may have been broadcast to an audience. Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark said Thursday Jeffs made two calls, each lasting the maximum 15 minutes allowed for calls by inmates. "It's alleged that Jeffs preached a sermon to his congregation, which means he would have had to have been on speakerphone," Clark said. Jeffs, 55, is serving life at a unit in East Texas, about 140 miles north of Houston. He was convicted in August of sexually assaulting two of his underage brides. The charges were the result of a 2008 raid by authorities on the FLDS ranch outside Eldorado in West Texas. He is the ecclesiastical head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Former church members have said Jeffs likely would continue to lead his Utah-based church from inside prison and that his followers likely still revere him as a prophet despite the considerable evidence at his trial showing he sexually assaulted young girls. Prosecutors used DNA evidence to show Jeffs fathered a child with a 15-year-old and played an audio recording of what they said was him sexually assaulting a 12-year-old. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas probes whether polygamist leader preached from jail | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO Reuters Originally published Thu Dec 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Reuters) - Texas prison officials are investigating whether jailed polygamist leader Warren Jeffs preached to his followers from behind bars on Christmas Day in violation of prison rules, officials said on Thursday. Jeffs, 56, who is the self-proclaimed 'prophet' of a breakaway Mormon sect, is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting two girls he wed as spiritual brides when they were 12 and 14 years old at his sect's Texas ranch. "We have confirmed that Jeffs made two phone calls on Christmas Day to a relative," Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division spokesman Jason Clark said. "At this point, we're investigating whether he may have circumvented policy and may have spoken to his congregation," he added. Such a move, if confirmed by the investigation, would be the latest indication Jeffs was trying to maintain sway over his sect, which has been condemned by the mainstream Mormon Church and accused of promoting marriages between older men and girls. Clark wouldn't say how officials were tipped off to the possible infraction, but said the department's Office of Inspector General was investigating and Jeffs could face internal punishment including losing his phone privileges. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs might have preached from prison | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Molly Hennessy-Fiske in Houston The Sacramento Bee Originally published December 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas prison officials are investigating whether jailed polygamist leader Warren Jeffs preached to his flock from prison on Christmas Day in violation of prison rules, officials told the Los Angeles Times on Thursday. Jeffs, 56, is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting two girls he married as "spiritual brides" when they were 12 and 14 years old at his breakaway Mormon sect's West Texas ranch. "We have confirmed that Jeffs made two phone calls on Christmas Day to a relative," Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark told the Times. "At this point, we're investigating whether he may have circumvented policy and may have spoken to his congregation." If so, Jeffs could be trying to maintain control over his sect, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which claims 10,000 followers in North America and teaches that a man should have at least three wives. The sect has been condemned by the mainstream Mormon Church for promoting marriages with underage girls. Clark wouldn't say what sparked the investigation. He said the department's Office of Inspector General was investigating and that Jeffs could face internal punishment, including the loss of telephone privileges. Earlier this year, Jeffs was hospitalized for nearly a month after a fast that former sect members described as a bid to persuade followers across North America to sacrifice on his behalf. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS: Following a 'prophet' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 'Historic year' for imprisoned FLDS leader | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — For the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, 2011 was the year its prophet fell, and the year several scandals previously only rumored about the polygamist sect were revealed in court. Sex beds in the temple, audio of the ritualistic sexual assault of a child, running from the FBI in disguise — all these facts and more came out in the trial of FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, who was convicted in August of sexually assaulting two girls, ages 12 and 15. Jeffs now is serving life plus 20 years in a Texas prison. "The evidence that came out in Mr. Jeffs' trial and the lack of fulfillment of prophecies it has been a historic year," said Willie Jessop, an FLDS member who once spoke on behalf of the church but no longer is loyal to Jeffs. He said the year's proceedings have unveiled a betrayal of most FLDS members by church leaders. Pretrial hearings spilled over from the previous year for Jeffs and led to a bevy of attorneys representing him: Richard Wright of Nevada helped Jeffs unofficially at the beginning; Gerry Morris of Austin was fired by Jeffs the day he hired him; then Fred Brigman of San Angelo was appointed; then Jeff Kearney and Reagan Wynn of Fort Worth came as replacement. Each time, the new attorney would ask the court for more time to review the hundreds of boxes of evidence seized from a raid on the FLDS Yearning for Zion Ranch, enough documents to fill a 600-square-foot room floor to ceiling. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fundamentalist church sends revelations to Custer commissioners | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mary Garrigan Rapid City Journal Originally published Thursday, December 29, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Custer County commissioners each got a letter from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints recently that contained revelations from its jailed spiritual leader Warren S. Jeffs. The three-page letter, signed by church patriarch Vaughan Taylor and bishop John Barlow, included revelations through Jeffs that were dated Nov. 23 and spoke of a need to "prepare righteously for coming great war." It included 12 items, including a revelation apparently warning against the consequences of allowing homosexuals to serve openly in the U.S. military. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs 'used phone to preach two sermons to his followers from jail cell on Christmas day' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daily Mail Reporter Daily Mail - London, England Originally published 30th December 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Even from inside his jail cell, polygamist leader Warren Jeffs is still trying to exert power over his followers. Texas prison officials are investigating whether Jeffs preached to his followers from behind bars on Christmas Day in violation of prison rules, officials said on Thursday. Jeffs, 56, who is the self-proclaimed 'prophet' of a breakaway Mormon sect, is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting two girls he wed as spiritual brides when they were 12 and 14 years old at his sect's Texas ranch. He is being held at a unit in East Texas, about 140 miles north of Houston. 'We have confirmed that Jeffs made two 15-minute phone calls on Christmas Day to a relative,' Texas Department of Criminal Justice Institutional Division spokesman Jason Clark said. 'At this point, we're investigating whether he may have circumvented policy and may have spoken to his congregation,' he added. Such a move, if confirmed by the investigation, would be the latest indication Jeffs was trying to maintain sway over his sect, which has been condemned by the mainstream Mormon Church and accused of promoting marriages between older men and girls. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prosecutors want delay in Warren Jeffs bigamy case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Associated Press San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published December 30, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO — Prosecutors are asking a Texas judge to put off a bigamy trial for polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs. In a motion this week with State District Judge Barbara Walther, Assistant Texas Attorney General Eric Nichols asked that a pretrial conference set for next week be delayed until late 2012 considering Jeffs already is serving life plus 20 years in prison for two counts of sexual assault of a child. Nichols said his request was made "in light of judicial economy concerns." The bigamy trial was set for February. According to the motion, the 56-year-old Jeffs has no lawyer. The bigamy charges against the leader of the Utah-based Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints are related to one of the two underage girls in the August assault trial. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Marriages dissolved, sexual relationships banned among FLDS faithful | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By John Hollenhorst KSL-TV Originally broadcast December 30th, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HILDALE — As the year comes to an end and the followers of Warren Jeffs await the apocalypse he has predicted, they're living under a challenging edict: they're forbidden to have sex until Jeffs is sprung from a Texas prison. "He has predicted that the walls in the prison where he's at will fall and crumble," said Joni Holm, who has many relatives in the polygamous FLDS faith. According to Holm, Fundamentalist LDS Church members also face their faith's most severe punishment, excommunication, if they conceive a child. It's one of the strangest edicts in a season full of them. Jeffs has issued a stream of revelations, prophecies and orders to his congregation in the border community of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz. The recent edicts from Jeffs' prison cell seem to be having two contradictory effects: Many are leaving the FLDS faith in disgust, and those who stay are reported to be increasingly devoted to a man who is serving a lifetime sentence for raping underage girls. According to numerous critics and outside observers, the imprisoned FLDS leader has sometimes acted through his brother Lyle and other times has spoken directly to his congregation over the phone from prison. He recently banned many of the things his followers enjoy: bicycles, ATVs, trampolines, even children's toys. But the sex edict reaches into the bedrooms of all his devoted followers. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Follower says he was expelled from FLDS for violating Warren Jeffs' sex ban | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Gary Tuchman CNN Originally published Sat December 31, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (CNN) -- A long-time follower of a jailed polygamist sect leader says he has been ex-communicated after admitting to having sex with his wife -- a violation of an order that Warren Jeffs apparently issued from behind bars. Jeffs' Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints also dissolved his marriage, the follower told CNN late Friday. The church member spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue. The report follows news that Texas officials are investigating whether Jeffs violated his prison phone privileges by calling his congregation with orders, according to CNN affiliate KSL-TV in Salt Lake City. Jeffs, leader of the 10,000-member church, is serving a life-plus-20-year term in Texas for sexual assault. He was convicted in early August of the aggravated sexual assaults of a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl that Jeffs claimed were his "spiritual wives." The television station, citing critics and observers, reported Friday that Jeffs has acted through his brother, Lyle, and at other times spoken directly to his congregation over the phone from prison. He recently banned followers from using bicycles, ATVs, trampolines and children's toys, the station reported. "Right now, they have all been told that they are not to live as husband and wife," Joni Holm, who has many relatives in the church, told the station. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Apocalypse Now? Warren Jeffs' New Years deadline approaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Members reportedly ordered to be 'rebaptized,' some may be disappearing | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ben Winslow Reporter Fox 13 KSTU-TV Originally broadcast December 31, 2011 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HILDALE, Utah - A deadline set by Fundamentalist LDS Church leader Warren Jeffs for his members to reaffirm their commitment to the faith is prompting some people to walk away from the polygamous church on the Utah-Arizona border. Other FLDS members are simply vanishing once they are re-committed to the faith, ex-members and observers told FOX 13. Jeffs, who is imprisoned in Texas for child sex assault related to underage marriages, has ordered his followers to be questioned by FLDS leaders. They've had to fill out questionnaires, confess their sins and be re-baptized into the faith, only after church elders deem them worthy, ex-members said. Jeffs has reportedly set down new restrictions, including demanding his followers give up any forms of entertainment; children have been told to give up toys and bicycles, and husbands and their wives have been forbidden to have sexual relationships unless it is for procreation (and only then with the approval of Jeffs), ex-members have said. "They've been going into the meetings, the big meetings every single day since Saturday," said ex-FLDS member James Barlow. Outside the FLDS Church's meeting hall and at a local school, the parking lots are packed. FLDS faithful were photographed scurrying in and out of the buildings. If members don't recommit to the church, they will be excommunicated, Barlow said. He walked away from the church last month. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs voids marriages, bans sex | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By CNN KMVT - Twin Falls, Idaho Originally broadcast January 1, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (CNN) Many remaining followers of Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned FDLS leader say they are disgusted. Jeffs just announced marriages of his followers have all been voided. While Jeffs is in a Texas prison, his brother, Lyle, broke the news to residents of Colorado City and Hildale. A relative of FDLS members says a lot of the faithful members are meeting almost daily and being re-baptized. They won't be considered married until Jeffs gets out of prison to personally reseal them. "Right now they have all been told that they are not to live as husband and wife. They can live in the same house but they are not to have sexual relationships until warren comes out and reseals them," says Joni Holm, a relative of FLDS members. Jeffs is serving a life sentence for raping underage girls. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 'Dark Sisters' examines issues of polygamy through opera | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Production looks at lives of women in fundamentalist sect | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published January 2, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas - A haunting version of a children's song played out over the "Dark Sisters" opera, a production about a polygamist Mormon sect. The song: "Kind father I thank you for these little hands," a fundamentalist Mormon song about work and learning one's part in society, composer Nico Muhly said. "We used two children's songs, ghost versions of them," Muhly said over the phone from Iceland, where he was working on another musical project. The emotions evoked in those musical pieces mixed with the feelings of repression, security, dependence, fear, isolation and sadness swirled in recent performances of "Dark Sisters," modeled partly off the controversies and crisis of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The opera has finished showing in New York, where it ran for 10 days in the middle of November, but the curtains are set to pull back on another production of the opera in Philadelphia in June. "Most everyone I talked to said they would like to see it again," artistic director and conductor Neal Goren said. "It's too complex to absorb in one hearing." The piece is a chamber opera that examines the lives of women in the polygamist sect against the background of a government raid on one of their communities, and the subsequent exposure of the sect and mainstream society to each other. The scenario has played out throughout Mormon and fundamentalist Mormon history. The most recent example being the 2008 raid on the FLDS Yearning for Zion Ranch in Schleicher County. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| As many as 1,000 may be exiled from the FLDS Church | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ben Winslow fox13now.com KSTU-TV Originally broadcast January 2, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HILDALE, Utah - As many as a thousand people may have been exiled by the Fundamentalist LDS Church under an edict by imprisoned polygamist leader Warren Jeffs. From his prison cell in Texas, Jeffs reportedly set a New Year's deadline for his faithful followers to be re-baptized into the faith or face excommunication. Over the weekend, hundreds of vehicles were seen parked at a meeting hall as well as schools in the community. Ex-members of the church and observers said it appeared it was where they learned if they remained in the church or were exiled. "What's happened is Warren Jeffs has divided the community into at least two different groups, probably three," said private investigator Sam Brower, who works for attorneys suing the FLDS Church. He photographed hundreds of people going into the meetings. The majority remained in the FLDS Church, ex-member Isaac Wyler told FOX 13. Another group, believed to be comprised of nearly 1,000 individuals were told they must atone by "yearning for Zion," but were not allowed to attend church services. "They were told to repent," Wyler said, adding that they could still tithe to the church. Others were excommunicated from the church entirely. Brower said that in some cases, entire families were split apart. "I talked to one guy that was kicked out," he said. "The church officials showed up at his door at three o'clock in the morning, removed his wife and ten children. To say it was heartbreaking was an understatement." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Column: Cult leader Warren Jeffs acting a lot like Jim Jones | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By DeWayne Wickham USA TODAY Originally published January 2, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The terrorist who worries me most in this New Year is not an avowed enemy being stalked by American forces abroad. It is Warren Jeffs, the homegrown cult leader and imprisoned pedophile. From his Texas prison cell, Jeffs - who is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl and a consecutive 20-year sentence for raping a 15-year-old girl - is demanding even sheep-like behavior from members of his 10,000-member fundamentalist church. And he is, apparently, getting it. Jeffs has banned his followers from having sex until he is released, Joni Holm, who has relatives in the cult, told the Salt Lake City Deseret News. That's not likely to happen anytime soon since Jeffs, 56, must serve at least 45 years before he can be paroled. Still, Jeffs has ordered his followers to reaffirm their faith (and loyalty to him) by handing over control of most of their worldly possessions to his lieutenants. Children must give up their toys, girls under 18 aren't allowed to work or have a cellphone, and access to media outlets and the Internet is banned, the Deseret News also reported. Many of Jeffs' followers were told to give his cult $5,000 by New Year's Eve or face expulsion from his Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which is a breakaway faction of the Mormon Church. Jeffs' edicts would be laughable - especially his ban on sex in a cult where men are allowed to take multiple wives - if it were not the product of a twisted mind that is capable of much worse. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Library in polygamist town vandalized | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Brent Hunsaker ABC 4 News Originally broadcast January 2, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COLORADO CITY, Arizona (ABC 4 News) - Another blow to efforts to open a public library in the polygamist community along the Utah - Arizona border. Vandals broke into the library building. Damage to the volunteer project is estimated at more than $10,000. Pictures obtained by ABC 4 from Colorado City resident Andrew Chatwin show the ceiling of the main room is ripped out, dry wall and insulation cover the floor and at least two windows are damaged or gone -- frame and all. The identity of those responsible is unknown, but it's not the first time the library has been vandalized. In April of 2011, FLDS men were told to "clear out" the building by their leaders. A "work crew" broke locks, tossed furniture and removed tens of thousands of donated books. Some of the books were burned, but many more were taken in a trailer and dumped at various charities around Southern Utah. Surveillance video from the Deseret Industries in Cedar City shows FLDS men delivering boxes of books. "It's a no brainer to figure out who did it," said Isaac Wyler, one of a handful of residents of Colorado City who are not FLDS. Wyler protested the ransacking of the library building to Colorado City town marshals, but was told it was a "civil matter." He told ABC 4, "If a non-FLDS person had gone into a place like that, they would have been cuffed and stuffed and put in Purgatory Jail real quick." The book burning in April and now the vandalism inside the building seem to send a clear message: Anything from the outside world -- referred to as Babylon by the FLDS -- is not welcome in Colorado City. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| From prison, Warren Jeffs allegedly banning sex, marriage by FLDS church members | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By God Discussion Reporter God Discussion Originally published January 3, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Even though he is not supposed to be doing so, polygamist Warren Jeffs appears to be issuing edicts to members of the FLDS (Fundamentalist Latter Day Saints) church members. An investigation is underway after FLDS church members came forward saying Jeffs sent orders to his followers from behind bars. Jeffs is in prison in Texas, after being convicted of having sex with under-aged girls who he married. He was sentenced in August to life in prison plus 20 years for assault. According to his followers in Utah, he recently banned bicycles, ATVs, trampolines and even children's toys. In his latest move, Jeffs has voided all marriages in the sect. In his edict, he said that couples can live together but cannot have sex until he is released from prison. A former sect member came forward after he was excommunicated from the 10,000-member church for having sex with his wife. Newsy reports that according to the Salt Lake Tribune, "... dozens of men have been cast out of the polygamous sect this year by leaders loyal to Warren Jeffs ... Jeffs gained perhaps his greatest ability to communicate in years when he was transferred to a Texas jail where he had access to a payphone. Former members and jail staff said he used the phone to preach to the FLDS congregation over a loudspeaker." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas Officials Investigating Warren Jeffs Phone Calls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Cristina Flores KUTV 2News Originally broadcast Tuesday, January 03 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (KUTV) TEXAS - The state of Texas is investigating phone calls made by Warren Jeffs from prison. There are claims that Jeffs may have broken the rules and used his phone to preach to his followers on Christmas day. We reported in the past that Jeffs may have been preaching through the prison phone. People from Texas and Utah have been asking authorities in Texas to look into Warren Jeffs' phone calls. He apparently has a list of 10 people and phone numbers that he is authorized to call. But it is against the rules for his phone calls to be broadcast or to be recorded. Joni Holm, who has rescued young people who've fled from polygamy and Warren Jeffs communities, says on Christmas Day, Jeffs used the phone to preach to his followers. She says his voice is often recorded then broadcast - or transferred to people on a 3-way conference call. Holm and the founder of Americans Against the Abuses of Polygamy both say they've petitioned the authorities in Texas to look into Jeffs' phone calls. Now, the Texas Department of Criminal justice is investigating. Two people on his call list have been banned from receiving his phone calls. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas officials suspend Warren Jeffs' phone privileges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dave Alsup CNN Originally published Tue January 3, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (CNN) -- Polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs' phone privileges have been suspended, as investigators look into whether he preached from prison, authorities said Tuesday. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice announced last week that it had initiated an investigation into claims that Jeffs used the phone to preach to his congregation on Christmas Day. Records show that Jeffs made two phone calls on Christmas Day, said Jason Clark, a Criminal Justice Department spokesman, who declined to identify the people who lost their phone privileges with Jeffs. "It would be a violation of the rules if the person called were to place the call on speaker phone or record the conversation. The Office of Inspector General has asked us to suspend the accounts of certain individuals on his calling list while they continue to investigate," said Clark. Texas inmates are allowed to call as many as 10 people who have registered with the offender phone system vendor. Calls can be up to 15 minutes in length, and offenders are limited to 240 minutes of phone time per month. All calls are recorded and monitored except those between an inmate and his attorney. Jeffs remains isolated in protective custody in the state's Powledge Unit prison facility near Palestine, Texas. "He has no cellmate. No prison job. And the only time he leaves it (his cell) is for a shower and recreation," Clark said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs' prison phone privileges disconnected | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ben Winslow FOX 13 News KSTU-TV Originally broadcast January 3, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY - Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs' phone privileges have been suspended pending the outcome of an investigation into whether he violated Texas prison rules by delivering a Christmas Day sermon over a speakerphone from his cell. Texas prison officials confirmed the decision to FOX 13 late Tuesday night. The move basically shuts off one of Jeffs' biggest ways of communicating with his followers. He is kept in isolation for 23 hours a day at a prison in Palestine, Texas, since he was sentenced to life plus 20 years for child sex assault, stemming from his polygamous marriages to a 12-year-old and a 15-year-old girl. Jeffs, 56, recently handed down strict new rules for members of the Utah-based Fundamentalist LDS Church. Ex-members of the FLDS Church said followers were told to give more to the church, children were ordered to give up their toys and husbands were forbidden from sexual relations with their wives unless it was with approval from church elders and for the purposes of a child. As FOX 13 first reported on Monday, Jeffs exiled more than 1,000 people from the polygamous sect under orders that they confess their sins and be re-baptized or face excommunicated. The majority of those people were told to continue to "yearn for Zion," but others were told they were excommunicated entirely. Church observers told FOX 13 entire families were split apart. See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs' sect casts out 1,500 members | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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United Press International Middle East North Africa Financial Network - Amman, Jordan Originally published Wednesday, January 04, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| COLORADO CITY, Ariz., Jan. 4, 2012 (UPI via COMTEX) -- The polygamist sect led by the jailed Warren Jeffs cast out about a quarter of his followers, members of the Colorado City community said Wednesday. The estimated 1,500 members cast out during the weekend were told they were "unworthy" by Jeffs' brother Lyle, who interviewed followers individually. Some families were divided by the judgments, with some wives being told they were worthy and others being told to repent. Lyle Jeffs held each follower's hand to see if that person was lying as he questioned them, asking things like: "Are you saying your prayers in all that you do?" and "Do you think only pure thoughts?" Ezra Draper, a former member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, told The Salt Lake Tribune people were asked to "renew their covenants." Roughly 6,000 people are estimated to live within the community. Followers have not been asked to leave their families or homes, but rather barred from access to the community meeting house and told to worship elsewhere. No one has been formally excommunicated. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs phone use suspended | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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MICHAEL GRACZYK Associated Press The Spectrum Originally published January 4, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOUSTON — Texas prison officials have suspended indefinitely the phone privileges of convicted polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs while they investigate whether he violated rules with improper telephone calls on Christmas Day. Officials believe the calls Jeffs made to two approved people on his phone list were broadcast on a speakerphone to his congregation, a violation of the prison phone rules. "At this point, he's unable to make phone calls pending the outcome of the investigation," Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark said Wednesday. He said the inquiry would likely wrap up within the next week or so. Authorities aren't saying how they found out Jeffs may have been preaching over the phone, but have noted that except for calls to their lawyers, calls made through the inmate telephone system are monitored and recorded. Jeffs, 56, is serving a life sentence plus 20 years at an East Texas prison for sexually assaulting two of his underage brides. The charges followed a raid in 2008 on a West Texas ranch that's home to followers of his Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Each of the Christmas Day calls lasted 15 minutes, the maximum duration before calls are cut off. Clark said the two people Jeffs called have been suspended from his call list, which can contain up to 10 names. They were not identified. Names on inmates' phone lists are not a matter of public record, he said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs bigamy pretrial canceled | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published January 4, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas - A pretrial hearing for Warren Jeffs regarding bigamy charges against the imprisoned "prophet" of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been postponed, a clerk at the Schleicher County courthouse confirmed Wednesday. The conference had been set for Friday in San Angelo. On Dec. 28, 51st District Attorney Steve Lupton filed a motion to delay the hearing in part because the state's lead attorney in the case, Eric Nichols, had a conflict on the Jan. 6 conference date. The motion asked for a date in "late 2012." No paperwork had been filed by presiding 51st District Judge Barbara Walther in support of the motion. A court coordinator in Tom Green County told Schleicher County court staff the pretrial wouldn't happen on Friday. The motion states that Jeffs appears to be "currently unrepresented by counsel" and had no other judicial commitments pending. Jeffs is serving sentence of life plus 20 years in the prison complex at Palestine for sexual assault of two girls ages 12 and 15. The trial of former FLDS president Wendell Loy Nielsen, originally set Jan. 24, also has been postponed. No new date has been set, a Schleicher County clerk said. Nielsen faces three counts of third-degree bigamy, which could result in up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| AG intends to look into allegation of FLDS girls being secretly held | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By John Hollenhorst KSL-TV Originally broadcast January 4, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HILDALE -- Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff says he intends to look into allegations that girls are secretly being held, possibly for sexual purposes, by followers of imprisoned polygamist Warren Jeffs. This latest allegation comes in the context of rising tension in Jeffs' church. The prison walls did not crumble at New Years as he supposedly prophesied. Now, there is even more turmoil among his followers. Printed documents attributed to Jeffs are piling up at the Attorney General's office. The purported revelations generally predict doom and destruction and they've been mailed by FLDS officials regularly in recent weeks to government offices, churches and even schools around the country. "We read it just to see if there's any specific threat from him or from his people or any kind of order to do anything that might be a public safety concern," Shurtleff said. So far no specific threats have been identified, according to Shurtleff. Meanwhile, in the FLDS community of Colorado City, Arizona and Hildale, Utah somewhere between 1000 and 2000 people were reportedly told they are not righteous enough to attend regular meetings of the FLDS church. One man in the blackballed group said his wife and ten children were taken by church leaders at 3 in the morning. Private investigator Sam Brower said the man called him in tears. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Warren Jeffs' December 2011 Revelations from prison received by Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff on January 4, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Division in FLDS after deadline | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Followers had until Dec. 31 to prove loyalty | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published January 5, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — The New Year's deadline given to followers to prove their faithfulness to imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs came and went, and the dust has yet to settle. Members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints had until Dec. 31 to show they were completely loyal to Jeffs, 56, who is in prison for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl. Jeffs retains control over the sect through his brothers and members still loyal to him. "The fallout is extremely far reaching as far as the social aspect," said Willie Jessop, who once acted as a spokesman for the sect but now opposes Jeffs' leadership. Between 1,000 and 1,500 people have been kicked out of the sect in the latest round of excommunications, according to those close to the FLDS and social organizations that offer help to those who try to leave the sect behind. The sect is estimated to have had about 10,000 members in the United States and Canada. To show loyalty, FLDS members were told to get rid of pets and toys, to abstain from sex and to give $5,000 per month to the church. "The problem is, they had to turn in their assets to qualify," Jessop said. "Now, with the realization that they were swindled out of everything including their religion, it's an overwhelming social issue." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Members of Warren Jeffs' church are 'secretly holding underage girls for sexual purposes' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daily Mail Reporter Daily Mail - London, England Originally published 5th January 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Underage girls are still secretly being held by the followers of polygamist leader Warren Jeffs for sexual purposes, it has been reported. A number of allegations have surfaced against Jeffs since he was jailed for life plus twenty years for raping a 12 and 15-year-old girl. These are the latest allegations to surface after it came out on Tuesday that he has banned all his members from having sex and has voided every marriage. Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said on Wednesday he intends to look into the claim young girls are being held for sex. He said: 'I believe there's still a half-dozen to a dozen places around the country where girls are still being held. And I'm very concerned about that. 'The worry is that there are still children being trafficked in potential sexual crimes or being held for the prophet for that purpose. 'We don't know exactly. But that is a concern and that is something I intend to look into.' He told the Deseret News that though it is too early to launch an investigation, they will be looking into the claims. Jeffs is said to have already kicked out one member who dared to sleep with his own wife after Jeffs declared that all marriages are void until he can return and 'seal' them. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mitt Romney's family in Mexico reveals candidate's heritage south of border | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Mike Taibbi, Michelle Balani, and Mario Garcia Rock Center MSNBC Originally published January 6, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Heading into the New Hampshire primary, former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney has a strong lead in the polls as he continues his effort to become the Republican nominee challenging President Obama in the fall. That would mean, of course, that the 64-year-old Romney would be closer to The White House than any Mormon ever has been. If Romney secures the nomination, he would also be the first presidential nominee whose father was born in Mexico. It's a little-known fact that there's a whole branch of Mitt Romney's family living south of the border, including his second cousin Leighton Romney, and about 40 other relatives descended from religious pioneers who first traveled to Mexico 125 years ago. These days, the Romneys of Mexico enjoy pleasant and productive lives in two remaining settlements: Colonia Juarez and Colonia Dublan, just 175 miles south of the border. "He's got a great pioneer heritage starting with people that crossed the plains going from Illinois to Utah, and then on from Utah down to Mexico," Leighton Romney told NBC's Mike Taibbi in an interview to air Monday night on 'Rock Center with Brian Williams.' "So there's a great heritage there of people that had to fight for what they believed in and for people that had to travel to different places and learn different things. I think there's a vast amount of experience that he could draw from there." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rick Santorum compares same-sex marriage to polygamy, in spirited exchange at N.H. college | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Sandhya Somashekhar Washington Post Originally published January 5, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DURHAM, N.H. - Rick Santorum took on a restive audience Thursday night over the issue of same-sex marriage, which the former Pennsylvania senator vociferously opposes. Asked by a college student why he opposed the right of same-sex couples to wed, he responded that there was no compelling reason to allow it and suggested that it was akin to legalizing polygamy. "So, everybody has the right to be happy?" he said. "So, if you’re not happy unless you're married to five other people, is that OK?" Santorum's logic provoked an outcry from the audience, which was made up primarily of local college students but also a number of local conservative voters who were there to support the surging presidential candidate. It was the first such confrontation over Santorum's well-documented opposition to gay rights and gay marriage since his surprisingly strong finish in the Iowa caucuses, but it probably won't be the last. New Hampshire has allowed same-sex marriage since 2010, and voters who were unaware of Santorum's stance on the issues are likely to hear a great deal about them now that he is emerging as the Christian conservative standard-bearer in the race. The grilling began almost immediately after Santorum concluded his opening remarks at an event sponsored by the New England College. Student after student challenged him on his stance, especially in light of his earlier remarks about the founding principle that all men were created equal. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Santorum's defense of bigotry fails on all counts | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Dan Turner Opinion L.A. Observations and provocations from The Times' Opinion staff Los Angeles Times Originally published January 6, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I will say this for Rick Santorum: He's one of the more well-spoken bigots I've heard in a while. His defense of his absolutist position on gay marriage, delivered in front of a largely hostile crowd of college Republicans in Concord, N.H., was concise, logical and delivered with the rhetorical flourish of a seasoned attorney. None of it hadn't been expressed by same-sex marriage opponents before, but Santorum's gift is to make his morally and legally untenable position sound reasonable. Boiled to its essence, his argument has three parts: First, the burden of demonstrating that same-sex marriage should be legalized falls on its supporters rather than its opponents, because the former group is the one that wants to change the law. Fair enough. Here's the reason, Rick: Because discriminating against a class of people by failing to grant them the same rights enjoyed by everyone else is unfair and unconstitutional. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brent Hunsaker - An open letter to Warren Jeffs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Brent Hunsaker ABC 4 News Originally published January 6, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Dear Warren Jeffs:
I know you have a lot of time on your hands these days. You spend all but one hour a day in your Texas prison cell. I hear that you've been doing a lot of writing and allegedly a lot of talking with your god. Your "conversations" have been printed up by your followers and mass mailed to all sorts of folks ... except me. What? You lost my address? Fortunately, others (thank you, Chris and Paul) have been kind enough to share with me your writings. You call them revelations. But I got to tell you, I don't buy it. Your stuff just doesn't make a lick of sense. The only thing I can make out of all those run-on sentences is that you want out of prison and if you don't get what you want, all "h-e-double-toothpicks" is going to break loose. With no due respect, Warren, you're no Moses. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Imprisoned Polygamist Pestering SD County | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Associated Press KDLT News - Sioux Falls, SD Originally published January 8, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A polygamist who's in prison for sexual assault has been pestering South Dakota county officials with letters and boxes of books. Butte County officials say the material is coming from Warren Jeffs and his supporters. Jeffs is leader of a sect called the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Jeffs is serving a life term, plus 20 years, in a Texas prison for sexually assaulting two young girls he claimed as his wives. A group affiliated with Jeffs owns land in western South Dakota's Custer County. But auditor Elaine Jensen says there's no record of Jeffs' church having any presence in Butte County. The materials include a letter from Jeffs in which he claims "keyholding power of authority on Earth." | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Butte County questions letters from imprisoned leader | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Milo Dailey Butte County Post staff Rapid City Journal Originally published Sunday, January 8, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BELLE FOURCHE - Butte County officials have no idea why they have been receiving letters and boxes of books from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and its imprisoned spiritual leader Warren S. Jeffs. The latest was opened for the Jan. 3 county commission meeting. It included a warning, "Cincinnati shall soon be a destroyed city." It's the fourth set of letters sent to the Butte County Commission, Butte County Sheriff Fred Lamphere and Butte County Auditor Elaine Jensen. "There's no cover letter, no nothing," Jensen said. "But it's our names and they've done well on their research." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| GOING VIRAL: Rick Santorum heckled as he compares gay marriage to polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daily Mail Reporter Daily Mail - London, England Originally published 9th January 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rick Santorum has emerged as a surprise hopeful behind Mitt Romney as the Republican presidential candidate. But his opposition to gay marriage is one key issue that threatens to derail his bid for the White House. Here, the former lawyer comes unstuck as he defends his opposition to gay marriage to an audience at New England College. Sanotorum responds to a question from a woman about the 'idea that all men to be equal and the right to happiness'. A confused Santorum says: 'So anybody can marry anybody else? So, anybody can marry several people?' The crowd jeers but the Republican continues: 'Everybody has the right to be happy? And if you're not happy unless you're married to five other people, is that OK?' The woman asks if 'two men should have the rights of a man and a women'. Sanotorum responds: 'What about three men? It's important that if we have a rational discussion based on reasoned thought, we employ reason.' Santorum is likening gay marriage to polygamy, the practice of having several wives, which pointedly is one of the doctrines of Mormons, the favoured religion of his main Republican rival Mitt Romney. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New Jersey Reconsiders Same-Sex Marriage; Santorum Worries About Polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By ANDREW ROSENTHAL The Opinion Pages The New York Times Originally published January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MANCHESTER, N.H. – There's more news from the equal rights front – some good, some just bizarre. The Newark Star-Ledger reported on Monday that the New Jersey state legislature will soon reconsider the issue of marriage equality. Two years ago the legislature rejected same-sex marriage, but advocates are somewhat optimistic about a reversal. Two years ago, the Star-Ledger noted, Gov. Jon Corzine, who was strongly disliked by his own base and supported marriage equality, had lost his seat to Chris Christie, who was strongly liked by his base and opposed it. Senator Steve Sweeney, who has since become the majority leader, had abstained from voting, but now says he should have voted for the bill. Mr. Christie has said he opposes gay marriage. It's not likely that he has changed his mind – although he hasn't commented on the new bill. So the challenge will be for the Senate to pass a law allowing New Jersey residents to marry people of their same gender, with a veto proof majority. Now let's set aside reality and travel to the Republican primary campaign ... Rick Santorum made a big deal out of "social" issues like gay marriage in Iowa, where evangelical Christians helped fuel his strong finish. But in New Hampshire, where social issues are not that important and gay marriage is legal, that's not such a great idea, and his campaign wanted to avoid the subject. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs Pesters SD Counties From Prison | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Derek Olson KELOLAND TV - Sioux Falls, SD Originally broadcast January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BELLE FOURCHE, SD - Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints leader Warren Jeffs has been behind bars since last August when he was sentenced to life in prison for sexually assaulting two young girls. But, as Butte County officials are discovering, incarceration isn't silencing the controversial leader. In early December, letters from Jeffs began arriving at the Butte County Courthouse. At first, they were handled like any other piece of mail. "The first time they came, I did give them to my commissioners," Butte County Auditor Elaine Jensen said. The letters, which contain some dire jailhouse prophecies from Jeffs, were promptly rejected by the Butte County Commission. But, the packages continued to arrive. "By the third time I'd received them, I realized that I had a pattern. That's when I contacted the Butte County Sheriff," Jensen said. "It isn't being ignored by us. We're aware that it's there. We're dealing with it, but it's not anything that we're interested in or buying into," Butte County Sheriff Fred Lamphere said. And Butte County officials say Warren Jeffs is not a pen pal they're interested in having. "If I receive any more I'm just supposed to refuse them," Jensen said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs' loses prison phone privileges for 90 days | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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MICHAEL GRACZYK Associated Press The Spectrum Originally published January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOUSTON — Texas corrections officials said Monday that imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs will be without phone privileges for 90 days as punishment for making calls that were put on speakerphone — presumably so he could preach to his followers. Jeffs, 56, was found to have broken the rules multiple times with calls used for conferencing, Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Michelle Lyons said. Prison officials had said last week that his phone use was suspended indefinitely while they investigated. "I don't know how far back it went," Lyons said. "The investigation stemmed from reports on Christmas Day he used the phone system to deliver sermons. He made at least two calls that day." Authorities didn't say how they found out about the improper calls, but have said previously that except for calls between inmates and their lawyers, calls made through the inmate telephone system are monitored and recorded. Jeffs is serving a life sentence plus 20 years for sexually assaulting two of his underage brides. The charges followed a 2008 raid on a West Texas ranch where followers of his Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints live. Former church members have said since his conviction last year that Jeffs would continue to try to lead his Utah-based church from prison, since followers revere him. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs' phone privileges revoked | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Prison phone use revoked, authorities say | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — Polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs has had his phone privileges revoked for 90 days after prison authorities concluded he broke rules concerning prison phone use. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice determined that on Christmas Day, Jeffs gave a telephone conference directed at multiple people, which is against the rules for Texas prisons, TDCJ spokeswoman Michelle Lyons said. "It was apparent in reviewing the phone calls that he was talking to a group," Lyons said. Lyons said she didn't have specifics on what was said in the calls but that the calls were each 15 minutes long, the maximum length allowed for a single phone call. Prisoners get 240 phone call minutes each month. Two people had been stricken from the list of people Jeffs was allowed to call during the investigation, Lyons said. Their identities are not public record, she said. Jeffs, 56, is serving a sentence of life plus 20 years in prison for sexually assaulting a 12-year-old girl and fathering a child with a 15-year-old girl. According to former and present members, Jeffs has exercised command of the sect through his brothers. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Imprisoned polygamist leader loses phone privileges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Jim Forsyth SAN ANTONIO Reuters Originally published Mon Jan 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (Reuters) - The state of Texas has hung up the phone on imprisoned polygamist leader Warren Jeffs. The Department of Criminal Justice said the self-proclaimed prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints lost his telephone privileges after he broke prison rules governing phone usage. "Jeffs made two telephone calls on Christmas Day to people on his phone list," prison spokesman Jason Clark told Reuters on Monday. "In that process, that phone conversation was either put on speaker phone, or recorded and played back to his church congregation. By broadcasting that conversation to a third party, that violated the rules." The restrictions will remain in place for 90 days. The penalty for what Clark called Jeff's "major violation" also includes the suspension of other prison privileges. "He was handed down a punishment of 90 days commissary restrictions, four months of contact visitation restrictions, and 15 day recreation restrictions," Clark said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs guilty of 'major disciplinary infraction' for prison phone calls | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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From Dave Alsup CNN Originally published Mon January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (CNN) -- Texas prison officials have found polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs guilty of "a major disciplinary infraction" following an investigation into whether he violated policy by -- among other things -- preaching a Christmas day sermon from prison, a state spokeswoman said Monday. Jeffs' phone privileges have been suspended for 90 days, added Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Michelle Lyons. While refusing to elaborate on the content of the conversations, Lyons said that Jeffs was found guilty of making conference calls on several occasions. "It was obvious to us he was talking to a group of people," she said. The leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Jeffs is serving a life-plus-20-year term in Texas for sexual assault. He was convicted last August of the aggravated sexual assaults of a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl that Jeffs claimed were his "spiritual wives." The state criminal justice department announced in late December that it had initiated an investigation into allegations that Jeffs used a prison phone to preach to his congregation on Christmas. Records show that Jeffs made two phone calls on December 25, said Jason Clark, a Criminal Justice Department spokesman. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Special Crown prosecutor drops out of Bountiful case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By MICHAEL MUI 24 Hours Vancouver Originally published Monday, January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A special Crown prosecutor working on the Bountiful sex allegations has resigned from his role in the trial, B.C.'s attorney general announced Monday. Lawyer Richard Peck will no longer represent the province in the case against religious leaders in the polygamous closed-community accused of child sexual exploitation, sexual assault and procurement in allegations dating back to the early 1980s. Finding a replacement for Peck is in the works, said Attorney General Shirley Bond. "It is my expectation that the new prosecutor will liaise with the RCMP during their investigation, review police reports to determine if criminal charges are warranted and, where appropriate, carry through with the laying of charges and conduct of any prosecutions," she said. It's alleged underage girls were transported between B.C. and Texas for the purposes of marriage, RCMP had said. In November, Chief Justice Robert Bauman upheld Canada's 121-year-old anti-polygamy law, citing it prevents harm to women, children and society. The reason behind Peck's resignation was not immediately known. He had previously recommended charges against Winston Blackmore and James Oler, both of Bountiful, be held until the November ruling. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy special prosecutor steps down | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wendy Stueck The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Monday, Jan. 09, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - Spurred by details of underage marriages that came to light in a landmark court reference on polygamy, the B.C. government is looking for a special prosecutor to weigh criminal charges relating to activity in Bountiful after the person who had been in the role declined to take another look. "I made my decision on this case 4 1/2 years ago," said Richard Peck, the Vancouver lawyer who was appointed as special prosecutor on the polygamy file in 2007. "And the government decided to go in a different direction and, as far as I was concerned, I wasn't going to be involved any more." Mr. Peck recommended in 2007 that criminal charges not be laid in connection with a police investigation into alleged misconduct by individuals in Bountiful. He suggested a court reference to determine whether Canada's ban against polygamy would stand up to a constitutional challenge. The attorney-general of the day, Wally Oppal, instead appointed two more special prosecutors. The first echoed Mr. Peck's recommendation, and the second, in 2009, approved charges against Bountiful leaders Winston Blackmore and James Oler. Those charges were stayed after a B.C. Supreme Court judge found Mr. Peck's decision was final and binding despite Mr. Oppal's desire for a prosecution. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shirley Bond seeks new prosecutor for Bountiful polygamy case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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CKNW News Talk 980 - Vancouver, BC Originally broadcast January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BC's Attorney General says she wants to make sure a new special prosecutor is assigned to looking into criminal charges in the polygamist commune of Bountiful as soon as possible. Shirley Bond says she's concerned about allegations of sexual exploitation and sexual assault, and has asked the Assistant Deputy Attorney General to make the appointment. "The mandate does allow the special prosecutor to deal with charges, for example, that may come from the RCMP related to underage girls being transported between Bountiful and the United States." Vancouver lawyer Richard Peck quit the file, after holding the position for six years. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New polygamy prosecutor to be appointed as lawyer steps down | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| BC Supreme Court upheld Canada's ban on polygamy in November | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Jesse Johnston News1130 Radio - Vancouver, BC Originally broadcast January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VICTORIA (NEWS1130) - A new special prosecutor will be appointed in the Bountiful case because senior lawyer Richard Peck is stepping down. It's been Peck's file for six years but he says he made it clear more than four years ago he'd be stepping aside at this point in the case. He was looking into whether underage girls were moved between Bountiful and the US to be married. "I would like to thank Mr. Peck for his contributions during the past six years," said BC Attorney General Shirley Bond. "He has impressive credentials as a senior criminal lawyer, and he has been thorough and diligent in reviewing the matters that have been forwarded to him." In November, BC Supreme Court Chief Justice Robert Bauman upheld Canada's ban on polygamy. He ruled it is constitutional and only infringes on religious freedom a little. Bond says she'll be looking to find Peck's replacement as soon as possible. "It is important that the Crown have a special prosecutor available to review any police reports received as a result of the RCMP's investigations," Bond said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. to name new special prosecutor in Bountiful case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Neal Hall Postmedia News The Vancouver Sun Canada.com Originally published January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — B.C. Attorney General Shirley Bond said Monday that a new special prosecutor in the Bountiful polygamy case will be appointed after senior Vancouver lawyer Richard Peck decided he no longer wants to continue on the case. "I have been informed by the assistant deputy attorney general for the criminal justice branch that Richard Peck, QC, no longer desires to continue on in his role as a special prosecutor for the province with regard to possible criminal offences that have occurred in Bountiful, B.C.," the minister said in a statement. "Specifically, there is an ongoing RCMP investigation into allegations that underage girls were transported between Bountiful and the United States, and that these and other activities from the early 1980s to present day may have involved serious criminal offences, including child sexual exploitation, sexual assault and procurement." Bond stated she is very concerned about these allegations and sent a letter to the assistant deputy attorney general, instructing him to appoint a new special prosecutor. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bountiful special prosecutor resigns | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Replacement for Richard Peck to be appointed as soon as possible | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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CBC News Originally published January 9, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The special prosecutor handling the alleged criminal offences in Bountiful, B.C., has resigned. In a written statement, Attorney General Shirley Bond said Richard Peck is taking himself off the job. "I have been informed by the assistant deputy attorney general for the criminal justice branch that Richard Peck ... no longer desires to continue on in his role as a special prosecutor for the province with regard to possible criminal offences that have occurred in Bountiful, B.C.," she said. The statement did not say why Peck stepped down from the post. RCMP continue to investigate allegations that underage girls were transported between the polygamous community of Bountiful and the United States. Police are looking into "serious criminal offences, including child sexual exploitation, sexual assault and procurement," said the statement. Bond said the special prosecutor's role is to review police reports received as a result of the RCMP's investigations, and to determine if criminal charges are warranted and carry through with the laying of charges. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New polygamy prosecutor to be appointed in B.C. after original lawyer steps down | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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James Keller The Canadian Press CityNews - Toronto, Ontario Originally published January 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A new special prosecutor will be appointed to review allegations involving the religious commune of Bountiful, B.C., as the province continues to weigh its response to a court decision that concluded Canada's polygamy law is constitutional. Richard Peck stepped aside as special prosecutor Monday, prompting the province's attorney general to announce he'd be replaced. The minister also said she is weeks away from deciding how to respond to last November's court decision, which concluded the anti-polygamy law is constitutional. The province has a number of options, from asking police and prosecutors to launch renewed polygamy investigations to asking a higher court to again weigh in on the constitutionality of the law. Peck has decided he no longer wants to act as special prosecutor for investigations involving Bountiful, a news release said. A replacement will be selected soon. The high-profile criminal lawyer was appointed special prosecutor in 2007 and ordered to review allegations that members of Bountiful were practising polygamy. Peck recommended against charges and suggested a constitutional reference. A second lawyer, Len Doust, agreed with Peck. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Bountiful evidence review long time coming | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daphne Bramham Vancouver Sun Originally published January 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nearly a year after lawyers in the B.C. attorney-general's ministry learned the details of how a father from Bountiful delivered his 13-year-old daughter into a forced, polygamous marriage with the now-jailed prophet of a fundamentalist Mormon sect, Attorney-General Shirley Bond has instructed that a special prosecutor be appointed to look into the evidence. Among the charges the prosecutor may consider are human trafficking, child sexual exploitation, sexual assault and procurement. It's welcome news. Still, one can't help wonder why it's taken so long. The evidence has been kicking around since September 2008. That's when a team leader in the B.C. Ministry of Children and Family Development got a fax from Texas following a raid on the compound built by Prophet Warren Jeffs. The 13-year-old Canadian girl is one of Jeffs's 79 wives and one of his 24 wives who were under the age of 18. She was among nearly 400 women and children taken into government care. Texas officials thought some-body in B.C. might want to do some-thing about it. Apparently, no one in B.C. did. And it's never been clear whether the fax was passed on. Last January that fax re-surfaced in the midst of the constitutional reference case. Lawyers for the B.C. attorney-general heard about it after they began pressing Texas for help. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs loses prison phone privileges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Molly Hennessy-Fiske in Houston Nation Now Los Angeles Times Originally published January 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas corrections officials have revoked the phone privileges of imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs after he allegedly placed calls in which he preached to his followers. The sect leader's phone privileges were revoked for 90 days starting Jan. 6, Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Michelle Lyons told The Times on Tuesday. Lyons said prison officials began investigating soon after receiving reports that Jeffs had used phone calls to preach a Christmas sermon. They found that Jeffs had placed at least two calls on Christmas Day, each lasting about 15 minutes, to individuals who were on his approved visitors' list. But the calls were then placed on speakerphone -- in violation of prison policy, Lyons said. "You're not to speak to a group — you're to speak to the person who is approved to receive your phone call," Lyons said, adding that officials determined through their investigation that "it was apparent he was speaking to more than one person." Once the calls were turned into conference calls, it became unclear who took part in the conversations, Lyons said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NBC's Taibbi Highlights Mitt Romney's Polygamist Ancestor and 'Controversial' Mormon Faith | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By: Kyle Drennen Media Research Center - Alexandria, Virginia Originally published Tuesday, January 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In a report on Monday's Rock Center on NBC, correspondent Mike Taibbi described how Mitt Romney's ancestors settled in Mexico during the late 1800's: "Mitt has said and written almost nothing about them over the years. One of his rare quotes, that they left the U.S. to escape persecution for their religious beliefs." Taibbi then noted: "In fact, Mitt's great-grandfather, Miles Park Romney, led that first expedition to escape not persecution but prosecution for polygamy, what Mormons called 'plural marriage.'" Later, Taibbi cited one of Romney's Mexican cousins on the issue: "Mike, a church school administrator here, says Mitt should just tell the whole story, even about the family's polygamist past that died with the great-grandfather Miles." Proclaiming that Mitt Romney has "publically ignored" his Mexican roots, Taibbi further asserted: "It's the Romney family's roots in the Mormon religion that remain controversial in Mexico, as in the U.S." Taibbi observed: "Those strong and persistent anti-Mormon sentiments led to Mitt Romney's "Faith in America" address during his first presidential run four years ago....But for the most part, he hasn't publically discussed his religion in detail." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brown County commissioners inundated with letters from sect leader Warren Jeffs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Scott Waltman swaltman@aberdeennews.com Aberdeen News - Aberdeen, South Dakota Originally published January 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brown County commissioners are among the elected officials in South Dakota getting letters from an imprisoned sect leader and his supporters. Commissioners said at their Tuesday meeting said that they're regularly getting letters and packages from Warren Jeffs, head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Jeffs is serving a life term, plus 20 years, in a Texas prison for sexually assaulting two young girls he claimed as his wives. A group affiliated with Jeffs owns land in Custer County. Brown County commissioners are ignoring his letters. Jeffs' Arizona-based church has also been sending piles of letters to other counties in the state. The letters mention a series of prophecies and warn leaders against wicked ways. In some, Jeffs claims "keyholding power of authority on Earth." | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Imprisoned polygamist leader Warren Jeffs calls himself LDS Church president | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Dennis Romboy Deseret News Originally published Tuesday, Jan. 10 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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SALT LAKE CITY — Imprisoned polygamist leader Warren Jeffs gave himself a new title on one of his latest pronouncements. At the end of a one-paragraph, handwritten revelation he writes "President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" under his signature. Jeffs is not president of the LDS Church. His church is formally known as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, commonly referred to as FLDS. It is based in the twin towns of Colorado City, Ariz., and Hilldale, Utah. It is not affiliated with the LDS Church, based in Salt Lake City. Over the past few months, Jeffs has mailed dozens of revelations from his prison cell in Palestine, Texas, to public agencies, schools and libraries throughout the country. In the latest round, he predicts the downfall of the president of the United States. Jeffs, 56, is serving a life sentence plus 20 years for sexually assaulting two of his underage brides. The charges followed a 2008 raid on a West Texas ranch where some of his followers live. Former church members have said since his conviction last year that Jeffs would continue to try to lead his Utah-based church from prison.
— Dennis Romboy Twitter: dennisromboy See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Warren Jeffs' December 2011 Revelations from prison received by Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff on January 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Got junk mail from Jeffs? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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JOYCE EDLEFSEN Rexburg Standard Journal - Rexburg, Idaho Originally published Wednesday, January 11, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mailings by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints filled with revelations by imprisoned Warren Jeffs are going unopened in Madison and Fremont counties. The polygamist sect, led by Jeffs, has included officials in the two counties on its mailing list. Using scripture-like language, the letters and packets of information proclaim Jeffs' teachings and encourage recipients to buy books and other materials. Some of Jeffs' revelations mentioned in the letters include messages that God will "send a full tidal wave of tsunami judgement," and decries the sin of "outward abuse of women." The letter also warns the President of the United States saying he "heedeth not the God over all." Fremont County Commission Chairman Skip Hurt says county officials have been receiving the documents, some via Priority Mail packaging, for several weeks. Most of the packages have been thrown away without being opened, with the last batch arriving on the commissioners' desks Monday. Hurt says he twice called a phone number listed in one of letters for Fundamentalist Patriarch Vaugh Taylor, but didn't get any response. Hurt says his intention in calling the number was to tell the organization to stop sending county officials "junk mail." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Quote of the Day | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Taegan Goddard's Political Wire politicalwire.com Originally published January 13, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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"If you have someone who has lived a polygamous life, that would raise questions about their character and ability to obey the law. But the fact that somebody had been divorced and remarried -- so what? Infidelity?"
-- Herman Cain, quoted by the Daily Beast. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mormon sect adds county governments to mailing lists | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mary Garrigan Rapid City Journal Originally published Friday, January 13, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Pennington County Commission is turning mailings from Warren Jeffs' fundamentalist Mormon religious sect over to the Pennington County Sheriff's Office as a precaution, according to commission office manager Holli Hennies. Like many commissions statewide, Pennington County began receiving the mailings in late November, and it got the most recent envelope on Jan. 11, Hennies said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attorney to be appointed for children in FLDS case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kevin Jenkins The Spectrum Originally published January 13, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - A court-appointed attorney will be named to represent the interests of children who are at the center of a custody battle between an exiled member of a polygamous church and the mothers of nine of his children. Judge James Shumate made the decision Thursday in 5th District Court after hearing testimony related to Colorado City resident Lorin Holm's request for custody of nine children who are living with their mothers at a Hildale home. Holm's complaint also seeks a restraining order limiting access to the children by members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which includes the children's mothers. Holm has said he fears his seven minor daughters, who are between the ages of 17 and 2, could be given in marriage before they reach legal age if they remain a part of the FLDS community. He said he also fears that his two sons may be sent away from the area to work as underage laborers on church construction projects. "His concern is if they're not in his home ... they are at risk of being groomed and taken away. Their minds are certainly being poisoned against him," Holm's attorney, Roger Hoole, said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Romney's Mexican origins spark interest | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sky News Australia - Melbourne, Australia Originally published Sunday January 15, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Mitt Romney's Mexican origins have sparked a powerful reaction among the Latino online community in the US. The reaction includes the creation on Twitter and Facebook of a Mexican alter ego of Romney who jokes about his candidacy for 'Presidente de los United States'. Political blogs and Web sites speak of 'Primo Romney', while CNN has pondered whether Romney could technically be the first Hispanic US president if he wins the November elections. Romney, who does not speak Spanish and opposes a path to legalisation for undocumented immigrants, has connections with Mexico that go back to when his great-grandfather, a Mormon like himself, moved south of the border to escape anti-polygamy laws. As a result, the politician's father, George Romney, was born in Colonia Dublan, a Mormon settlement in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua. This allows Mitt Romney to be technically eligible for Mexican citizenship. Romney won the Iowa caucus by a narrow margin before beating the field in New Hampshire and is the favourite in the January 21 South Carolina primary. See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Idaho Officials Being Flooded With Mail From Warren Jeffs, Followers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Posted by George Prentice Boise Weekly - Boise, Idaho Originally published Sun, Jan 15, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| It's not out of the ordinary for government officials and media outlets to regularly receive letters from prison inmates - let's face it, they have a fair amount of time on their hands and their letters are usually pretty long. But officials in Fremont and Madison counties in Eastern Idaho say they're mailboxes are being packed lately by mailings from none other than Warren Jeffs, the polygamist sect leader who was locked up in a Texas prison for sexually assaulting two young girls he claimed were his wives. The Rexburg Standard Journal reports that letters and packages of information proclaiming Jeffs' teachings have been filling mailboxes at the Fremont and Madison county offices. Fremont County Commission Chairman Skip Hurt said his colleagues have been receiving documents, some via Priority Mail, for several weeks. Madison County Clerk Kim Muir also confirmed that several Priority Mail packages have showed up at her office. Most of the packages have been thrown away unopened. The Standard Journal said Eastern Idaho is part of a wide set of mailings by Jeffs and his supporters. The Associated Press reports a similar flurry of mail to South Dakota. Jeffs recently lost his phone privileges at the Texas prison after he was accused of preaching to his followers in calls that he made around Christmas. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Imprisoned Jeffs imposes change on polygamous sect | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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JENNIFER DOBNER Associated Press The Spectrum Originally published January 15, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Lake City - Polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs may be serving a life-plus-20-year sentence in a Texas prison, but his grip on most of his 10,000 followers doesn't appear to be lessening and some former insiders say he's imposing even more rigid requirements that are roiling the church and splitting its members. The edicts from Jeffs, head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, form the basis for what he's called the "Holy United Order." An estimated 1,500 men, women and children church members failed to meet the stringent standards by a Jan. 1 deadline, said Willie Jessop, a former FLDS spokesman who no longer reveres Jeffs. Whether those members were excommunicated outright or have been put on probationary status until they can prove they meet the standards remains unclear, Jessop and others said. Some marriages have been dissolved and families split up as Jeffs works from his prison cell to reshape his church. Since about mid-November, Jeffs' brother, Lyle Jeffs, has been conducting personal interviews with members to determine their worthiness under the new order, the former church members say. "There are eight questions, but before they get there, they ask, 'Do you accept Warren Jeffs as God's mouthpiece and your prophet,' and if you believe he can rule in all the affairs of your life," said Jessop. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs: Polygamous Leader Manipulates Sect From Prison as FLDS Splinters | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Melanie Jones International Business Times - New York, New York Originally published January 16, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs may be serving a life sentence in a Texas prison for sexual assault, but the former head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) continues to control his radical off-branch of the Mormon Church behind bars. According to an insider within the radical Mormon sect, Warren Jeffs has been purging disloyal members and continuing to run the FLDS Church since around mid-November 2011. But his attempts to keep control of the Church, as borderline illegal as they might be, only seem to be driving his followers away from him, in what may be the biggest split within the fundamentalist Mormon sect since its creation.
'Members were going to be destroyed' Willie Jessop, a former FLDS Church spokesman, said something close to 1,500 men, women and children failed to meet stringent new requirements that Jeffs has been passing down through his brother Lyle, who personally interviews families to test their loyalty. Those families who fail to meet Jeffs' standards are either excommunicated outright or put on probationary status from the Church. Jessop reports that some marriages have been dissolved and families split apart since Jeffs first began to pass down the new edicts, which form the basis of the leader's "Holy United Order," from within his jail cell. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New prosecutor for Bountiful, B.C., but mandate doesn't include polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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James Keller The Canadian Press Global Edmonton - Global Television - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Wednesday, January 18, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - The new special prosecutor appointed to look into the religious commune of Bountiful, B.C., isn't considering charges related to multiple marriage, but the province's attorney general says a polygamy trial hasn't been ruled out. Peter Wilson has been appointed to examine possible charges related to the movement of teen brides across the U.S. border to marry much older men, the province's criminal justice branch announced Wednesday. The branch noted Wilson was not asked to consider polygamy charges, despite a landmark court decision last November that concluded the anti-polygamy law is constitutional. Attorney General Shirley Bond says her ministry is still contemplating how to respond to the court's judgment. "Certainly, we're not precluding that potential of looking at polygamy charges in the future," Bond told reporters Wednesday at an unrelated announcement in Vancouver. "There's still some review being done by my legal team of the decision that was brought down." Bond said she would be making a decision in the weeks ahead. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vancouver lawyer named new special prosecutor for Bountiful | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wendy Stueck The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Vancouver - Vancouver lawyer Peter Wilson has been named as the new special prosecutor to look into potential criminal offences in Bountiful. B.C.'s Criminal Justice Branch announced Mr. Wilson's appointment Wednesday. Bountiful, in southeastern B.C., is home to members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS), a breakaway Mormon sect that holds polygamy as a tenet of its faith. Police have looked into allegations of criminal activity in the community several times over the past two decades but potential polygamy charges have foundered on questions of whether such charges would stand up to a constitutional challenge. Mr. Wilson's mandate does not include polygamy charges. Rather, he will be considering potential offences relating to sexual offences against minors, including sexual assault, sexual interference and parents or guardians procuring sexual activity. Details about activity involving minors – including young girls from Bountiful being whisked across the border to the United States to marry much older men, including FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, now jailed for sex crimes – were discussed last year in a B.C. Supreme Court reference on polygamy. In that proceeding, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Robert Bauman ruled that Canada's ban against polygamy should be upheld. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New special prosecutor named in Bountiful polygamy probe | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Staff Reporter The Province - Vancouver, BC Originally published January 18, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The B.C. attorney general's office has named Peter Wilson as special prosecutor to pick up its explosive investigation into the polygamist community of Bountiful. The Vancouver lawyer was appointed this week to replace Richard Peck, who stepped down from the probe early this month. B.C.'s legal branch is trying to determine whether charges of sexual exploitation or other offences are warranted against members of the commune. The breakaway Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints sect, in B.C. since the early 1980s, has been accused of forcing underage women into arranged marriages and motherhood with much older men. There have also been accusations of trafficking young women between Bountiful and a like-minded community in the U.S. led by Warren Jeffs. Jeffs is serving a sentence of life plus 20 years in a Houston jail for sexual assaults on two girls whom he "married" when they were 12 and 14. B.C. Mounties recommended charges in 2006, after an investigation into the allegations. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Peter Wilson named special prosecutor in Bountiful case, but with no mandate to file polygamy charges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Charlie Smith Straight Talk The Georgia Straight - Vancouver, BC Originally published January 18, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The B.C. government has appointed a new special prosecutor to offer advice to police investigating potential offences involving residents of the fundamentalist Mormon community of Bountiful in the Creston Valley. Vancouver lawyer Peter Wilson replaces Richard Peck, who resigned earlier this month for undisclosed reasons. If police forward a report to Wilson, he will determine if any charges should be laid. According to a statement released today by the criminal justice branch in the Ministry of Attorney General, Wilson's mandate "does not include consideration of polygamy related offences". The statement mentions the "possible prosecution of sexual exploitation and other alleged offences against minors by individuals associated with the community of Bountiful, from the early 1980s to the present". Those offences could include sexual assault, sexual interference, invitation to sexual touching, sexual exploitation of a young person, parent or guardian procuring sexual activity, householder permitting prohibited sexual activity, and failure to report a child in need of protection. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| New Crown attorney in child trafficking case | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Erica Bulman QMI AGENCY Toronto Sun Originally published Wednesday, January 18, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - A new special Crown attorney has been appointed to look into allegations of sexual exploitation and other offenses against minors in the polygamous community of Bountiful, B.C. Peter Wilson Q.C. was appointed to represent the province in the case against religious leaders in the closed fundamentalist Mormon community, who have been accused of sexual exploitation of a young person, sexual assault and procurement in allegations dating back to the early 1980s. Wilson is the fourth special Crown attorney appointed to the case. He replaced Richard Peck, who dismissed himself earlier this month. "It's very important we have a special prosecutor. This is a very high-profile case we're talking about right now," Solicitor General Shirley Bond said. Wilson will consider charges related to the trafficking of children into the United States, especially young girls sent to marry older men. He will also examine whether evidence supports the possible prosecution of alleged offenses against minors, including sexual assault, sexual touching, sexual exploitation, parent or guardian procuring prohibited sexual activity, and failure to report a child in need of protection. However, his mandate doesn't include consideration of charges related to polygamy. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Gingrich, Romney Debate The Perfect Wife | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Tom Dworetzky A New Yorker's Opinion International Business Times - New York, New York Originally published January 19, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A friend reports on a conversation between Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich overheard after the latest debate:
Mitt: So what's it like to have two women at the same time? Newt: Not at the same time, never. I'm no pervert. Mitt: You know what I mean, like two wives. Newt: Don't be daft. I never had two wives. That would be immoral. Mitt: Not necessarily. Newt: Oh, right. You could have two wives. Mitt: Don't be crazy. I love my wife, I would never do that. Newt: C'mon, Mormons, right? Mitt: You're attacking my religion? What are you, a bigot? Newt: Well, you gotta admit, bigamy is more a Mormon thing than a Christian thing. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| I-Team: FLDS Raising Money for Jeffs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Nathan Baca, Investigative Reporter By Alex Brauer, Photojournalist KLAS-TV 8 News NOW - Las Vegas, Nevada Originally broadcast January 20, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| LAS VEGAS -- Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs is making what former members of his church call a "last ditch" effort to raise money as he serves time in prison. An advertisement appeared in Friday's Review-Journal which gives southern Nevadans the opportunity to buy church proclamations ranging in price from $3 to $10. Leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, known as FLDS, did not return 8 News NOW calls. Church membership is estimated to be between 10,000 and 15,000 members. The I-Team talked to a member of the Child Protection Project who was a child bride in the FLDS church before leaving. "I believe he's gearing his people up. Several of the revelations where he does a call to his people that God will soon call his army forth to avenge him and things like that. I think this is his last ditch effort before he does that final call asking for God's army to stand up and go after everybody he feels persecuted him," Flora Jessop said. The FLDS church states they are sending the writings, purchased through the ads, to leaders all around the world. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist sect advertising Warren Jeffs revelations | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Associated Press Top Nation/World Headlines - Nation San Luis Obispo Tribune - San Luis Obispo, California Originally published January 20, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Faithful followers of imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs are making his apocalyptic writings available to the public through advertisements placed in newspapers nationwide. The ads appear in Friday editions of The Washington Post, The New York Times, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, The Salt Lake Tribune and other newspapers. A Washington Post ad sales representative tells The Associated Press a quarter-page ad in the newspaper costs about $10,000. The 56-year-old Jeffs has been sect president since 2002 and has long predicted natural disasters and the destruction of the world. Threats have increased since his 2010 conviction in Texas on sexual assault charges. He's serving a prison sentence of more than 20 years. A message left for FLDS patriarch Vaughan Taylor was not returned Friday. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Star Tribune accepts ad from convicted sex-assaulter's Mormon sect | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By David Brauer BrauBlog MinnPost - Minneapolis, Minnesota Originally published Fri, Jan 20 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Would you accept an ad from a religious sect touting a divine revelation given to a convicted sex abuser of two girls under 16? That's what the Star Tribune did Friday morning, running two ads from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. One (on page A5 of my Minneapolis edition), simply says, "Jesus Christ, Son Ahman." The second, on A6, proclaimes "Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ Given to President Warren Jeffs," and offers serveral writings for sale. Jeffs, the president of the polygamist sect, was convicted in 2011 of molesting two "child brides" aged 12 and 15. He is serving life plus 20 years in a Texas prison. I sent an email Friday morning to publisher Mike Klingensmith and sales V.P. Jeff Griffing seeking an explanation. I'll update this item as soon as I get one. [Update: a Strib spokesman is sticking with their policy, below, about not discussion advertiser relations publicly.] The Strib has rejected religion-based advertising — just seven months ago, they blocked an ad other newspapers ran from the Presbyterian Lay Committee, which opposed gay ordinations in that denomination. At the time, a Strib spokesman refused to explain why, saying, "We consider the ad acceptance process a private business transaction between us and the advertiser — which we do not discuss publicly." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS Imprisoned Leader Warren Jeffs Issues Revelations By Newspaper Ad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Heidi Hatch KUTV 2News Originally broadcast Friday, January 20 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (KUTV) TEXAS - Imprisoned FLDS prophet Warren Jeffs is making waves from his Texas prison cell. His phone privileges were revoked earlier this month. But now he's found a new way to communicate with the outside world. He's in prison but that doesn't mean he's no longer receiving revelations. Today his ads were printed nationwide. If you get the Salt Lake Tribune on your front porch, you probably saw the ad yourself. But if you get the Deseret News, Jeffs didn't think you needed the message. The FLDS Church apparently has money burn. On Friday in the Salt Lake Tribune, you'll find a 1/4 page ad. The published rate for a weekday in the Tribune is $1,900. A bargain compared to the ad rates of papers like the New York Times and Washington Post where ad space can cost tens of thousands. Other local newspapers running the ad included the Denver Post, the Las Vegas Review Journal, Minneapolis Star Tribune and the Nashville Tennessean. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What's up with those 'Jesus Christ, Son Ahman' ads? They showed up in newspapers nationwide Friday | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Statesman staff News > Life > Religion The Idaho Statesman - Boise, Idaho Originally published January 21, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Faithful followers of imprisoned polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs are making his apocalyptic writings available to the public through the ads, The Associated Press reported. Where did they appear? In Friday editions of The Washington Post, The New York Times, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, The Salt Lake Tribune and other newspapers, including the Idaho Statesman. The ads will run again in the Statesman on Sunday. Why publish them? "We did not make the decision to run this ad lightly, but we do support and believe in free speech and freedom of religion," said Travis Quast, Statesman sales and marketing vice president. "While we may not all agree with this group and what they believe, we found nothing offensive in their ad that would have kept us from publishing it." How did readers respond? A dozen called or emailed the Statesman with concerns about the ad; two canceled their subscriptions. Who is Warren Jeffs? The 56-year-old has headed The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints since 2002 and has long predicted natural disasters and destruction of the world. He was convicted in 2010 in Texas on sexual assault charges and is serving a prison sentence of more than 20 years. A message left for FLDS patriarch Vaughan Taylor was not returned Friday. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read Warren Jeffs' "Revelation" newspaper ad printed in the Washington Post on Sunday, January 22, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs claims to channel Christ in print ads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Annysa Johnson Faith Watch Milwaukee Journal Sentinel - Milwaukee, Wisconsin Originally published January 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| While evangelicals debate whether Mormons are Christian, Jesus Christ Himself apparently is speaking through a disgraced fundamentalist Mormon leader, or so he says. Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who's been mailing bizarre prophesies to public officials and media in recent months (I got a few), is now taking out quarter-page ads touting a revelation from Jesus Christ in newspapers around the country — including Milwaukee. The local ad appeared in two parts, on pages 8A and 9A in Sunday's Journal Sentinel, the latter under the jump of a story on the South Carolina primary, featuring a photo of Mormon presidential candidate Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney. (And, no, he's not FLDS.) The revelation says, in part, "Repent ye; now be full of humbling; all peoples shall be humbled in full way; as I send full judgments." And it's signed by two top leaders of the FLDS. The ads have appeared in the Salt Lake Tribune, Minneapolis Star Tribune and other papers around the country. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Monogamy reduces major social problems of polygamist cultures | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Media Release UBC Public Affairs The University of British Columbia - Vancouver, B.C. Originally pbulished Jan. 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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In cultures that permit men to take multiple wives, the intra-sexual competition that occurs causes greater levels of crime, violence, poverty and gender inequality than in societies that institutionalize and practice monogamous marriage.
That is a key finding of a new University of British Columbia-led study that explores the global rise of monogamous marriage as a dominant cultural institution. The study suggests that institutionalized monogamous marriage is rapidly replacing polygamy because it has lower levels of inherent social problems. "Our goal was to understand why monogamous marriage has become standard in most developed nations in recent centuries, when most recorded cultures have practiced polygyny," says UBC Prof. Joseph Henrich, a cultural anthropologist, referring to the form of polygamy that permits multiple wives, which continues to be practiced in some parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and North America. "The emergence of monogamous marriage is also puzzling for some as the very people who most benefit from polygyny – wealthy, powerful men – were best positioned to reject it," says Henrich, lead author of the study that is published today in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. "Our findings suggest that that institutionalized monogamous marriage provides greater net benefits for society at large by reducing social problems that are inherent in polygynous societies." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Read The University of British Columbia's study The Puzzle of Monogamous Marriage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamy leads to increased crime, B.C. study says | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Postmedia News The Vancouver Sun Originally published January 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — Polygamy leads to increased crime, according to just-published study by a University of B.C. researcher. Prof. Joe Henrich found that when rich men take more than one wife, it leaves a deficit of women leading to increased fighting and competition for the remaining women. "You have low-status men who are desperate for resources," said Henrich, a professor in the departments of psychology and economics. "More polygamy leads to a greater proportion of unmarried men, which leads to increased crime." Henrich and his co-authors studied societies where polygamy is prevalent, trying to discover the consequences. They also studied China, where the one-couple-one-child policy has led to a surplus of men, with similar results. "The scarcity of marriageable women in polygamous cultures increases competition among men for the remaining unmarried women," said Henrich. "The greater competition increases the likelihood men in polygamous communities will resort to criminal behaviour to gain resources and women." The study, published in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, based its study on polygamy — the taking of multiple wives — which continues to be practised in some parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and North America. See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist Blackmore not entitled to tax break on religious grounds, court told | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wendy Stueck The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Monday, Jan. 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The polygamous community of Bountiful is not a congregation and by insisting that it is, community leader Winston Blackmore is trying to offload a tax bill on to those who can ill afford to pay it – including young men shipped out of the community to work at low-paying jobs, a federal tax lawyer said on Monday. Mr. Blackmore directs what his family should do – "especially young men, who go out and work for a pittance," Justice Department lawyer Lynn Burch said in opening statements on Monday. It's such young men, many making less than minimum wage, who are among community members to whom Mr. Blackmore wants to shift a tax burden "that the [government] minister says is properly his to bear," Ms. Burch said. Mr. Blackmore, a long-time community leader in Bountiful, is appealing tax assessments under a little-used section of the Income Tax Act, maintaining that he was doing business for the benefit of the community and congregation. The federal tax department, however, says Bountiful doesn't meet the requirements spelled out in the act and that Mr. Blackmore made and spent money to support his polygamous family, under-reporting his income along the way. "If the appellant can be considered a shepherd to his flock, then the role of a good shepherd is to shear his flock, not to skin it," Ms. Burch said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Blackmore faces tax evasion charges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Charmaine de Silva VANCOUVER/CKNW AM 980 Originally broadcast January 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| For the first time ever, the leader of a polygamist sect in Bountiful is on the stand in a Canadian court. But this time, he's defending himself against tax evasion charges. During the three-week trial Winston Blackmore will appeal re-assessments of income tax returns he filed between 2002 and 2004, and in 2006, which show he underestimated his income by 1-point-5 million dollars. Blackmore's lawyers argue his company, J-R Blackmore and Sons, works for the benefit of their religious community, and therefore should be considered a congregation. That would force the tax burden to be split equally among all adult members of their community -- many of whom, the federal government claims, are actually young men who work for next-to-nothing. The trial is the first real chance for British Columbians to learn details about the secretive polygamist sect, after a judge squashed Blackmore's attempts to get it covered by a publication ban. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. polygamist Winston Blackmore in court to battle tax bill on religious grounds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Petti Fong Western Bureau Toronto Star Originally published Mon Jan 23 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — The normally staid Tax Court had Winston Blackmore as a high-profile witness Monday as the leader of the polygamist community in Bountiful, B.C., testified in his own defence in an ongoing fight over his tax bill. Blackmore testified that he is the appointed leader of a religious congregation in Bountiful, a position he claims can be traced back through six succeeding appointments all the way to Mormon founder Joseph Smith. "Basically in my role, I was in charge of my community, I was the presiding member of the community," said Blackmore, who considers himself a bishop. Blackmore's religious standing and whether his community — an off-shoot of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) — can be considered a legitimate religious group, is under scrutiny in the federal tax court. Lawyer Lynn Burch, representing the federal government, is arguing that Blackmore is the head of his polygamous family but cannot be considered the religious head of a recognized religious organization. At stake is hundreds of thousands of dollars the federal government claims Blackmore owes in back taxes and penalties. Burch said the polygamous community fails to meet the definition of a congregation. Blackmore, who has over 20 wives and dozens of children, is arguing that he heads a recognized religious group that will allow the community to be assessed for taxation purposes as a whole rather than having himself or individuals pay individual taxes. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. polygamous leader wants congregation assessment to save on his taxes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By: James Keller The Canadian Press Winnipeg Free Press Originally published January 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - The leader of a polygamous commune in southeastern British Columbia took the stand Monday at a trial that's attempting to define his obscure community. Hundreds of thousands of dollars depend on whether Winston Blackmore can convince a tax court judge that Bountiful, B.C., is a religious congregation deserving of special status. The trial is expected to place the community under an unprecedented spotlight, with Blackmore and other residents called to testify about life in Bountiful, from how its businesses and land are structured to the organization and beliefs of its religion. Blackmore spoke quietly as he described his own financial situation and recalled the history of the community. Bountiful was founded just south of Creston, B.C., near the U.S. border in the 1950s, just a few years before Blackmore was born. While the mainstream Mormon church renounced polygamy more than a century ago, Blackmore insisted he follows the church's teachings. "My religion has always been the religion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints," said Blackmore, wearing a dark suit in the witness box. "I believe in the Bible. I believe in the Book of Mormon." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist accused of tax fraud defends himself in court | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Suzanne Fournier Postmedia News Victoria Times Colonist - Victoria, B.C. Originally published January 23, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — The leader of a B.C. polygamous community charged with bilking taxpayers out of $4.3 million defended himself in Federal Court on Monday. Winston Blackmore is a self-styled "minister and businessman" from Bountiful, B.C., who is believed to have more than 20 wives and 100 children. On Monday, he spoke softly as he tried to explain why he declared very low employment and business income from the main Bountiful business over the years 2000 to 2006. The tax year 2005 is excluded, Blackmore said, because the company J.R. Blackmore and Sons, the main Bountiful cash cow, was "re-structuring" financially after ongoing federal audits. The Canada Revenue Agency sent in three auditors to Bountiful, who took over a boardroom starting in 2003 and 2004. CRA subsequently issued "re-assessments" of Blackmore's reported employment and business income, in the years 2000-04 and 2006. The CRA says it is owned millions of dollars in undeclared employment and business income, penalties and interest. Since 2000, the CRA claims Blackmore has bilked taxpayers out of $4.3 million worth of income tax and GST, both as an individual and through his company. Blackmore argues that he and his large extended family ought to be taxed as a congregation. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Surplus of unmarried men in polygamous societies leads to increased crime | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Ian Austin The Vancouver Province Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Polygamy leads to increased crime, concludes a just-published study by UBC professor Joe Henrich. Henrich found that when rich men take more than one wife, it leaves a deficit of women that leads to increased fighting and competition for the remaining women. "You have low-status men who are desperate for resources," said Henrich, a professor in the departments of psychology and economics. "More polygamy leads to a greater proportion of unmarried men, which leads to increased crime." Henrich and his co-authors studied societies where polygamy is prevalent, trying to discover the consequences. They also studied China, where the one-couple-one-child policy has led to a surplus of men, with similar results. "The scarcity of marriageable women in polygamous cultures increases competition among men for the remaining unmarried women," said Henrich. "The greater competition increases the likelihood men in polygamous communities will resort to criminal behaviour to gain resources and women." The study, published in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, based its study on polygamy — the taking of multiple wives — which continues to be practised in some parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and North America.
iaustin@theprovince.com twitter.com/ianaustin007 See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UBC-led study finds crime increases in polygamous societies | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Craig Takeuchi Vancouver Free Press Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Over the course of human history, a whopping 85 percent of human societies have permitted polygamy. However, a new University of British Columbia–led study reveals that this practise has contributed to higher levels of crime, violence, poverty, and gender inequality than in societies which institutionalize monogamous marriage. The study, entitled The Puzzle of Monogamous Marriage published in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, found that polygynous cultures had notably higher levels of rape, kidnapping, murder, assault, robbery, and fraud. The researchers attributed this boost to larger numbers of unmarried men. The shortage of unmarried women intensified the competition for women and resources between men, who often resorted to criminal activity. According to the study, led by UBC professor Joseph Henrich, monogamous marriage reduces male competition and social problems by allowing for a more equal distribution of female partners. Institutionalized monogamy also helped men shift focus from finding wives to paternal investment. The increase in parental interests results in long-term planning, economic productivity, financial savings, and child investment. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cultures that Permit Multiple Wives have Greater Levels of Crime | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Angelina Tala Medical Daily - New York, NY Originally published January 24, 2012 Tuesday | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In cultures that practice polygamy, where men are permitted to have multiple wives, the intra-sexual competition causes a greater level of crime, violence, poverty and gender inequality than in societies that practice monogamous marriage, suggests a study led by the University of British Columbia. The study, exploring the global rise of monogamous marriage, suggests that monogamous marriage is replacing polygamy rapidly because it has lower levels of inherent social problems. "Our goal was to understand why monogamous marriage has become standard in most developed nations in recent centuries, when most recorded cultures have practiced polygyny," says UBC Prof. Joseph Henrich, a cultural anthropologist, referring to the form of polygamy that permits multiple wives, which continues to be practiced in some parts of Africa, Asia, the Middle East and North America. "The emergence of monogamous marriage is also puzzling for some as the very people who most benefit from polygyny – wealthy, powerful men – were best positioned to reject it," says Henrich, lead author of the study, published in the journal Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Imprisoned sect leader Warren Jeffs spends thousands on ads | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Bob Smietana The Tennessean USA Today Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Jesus has a message for America, say leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Let Warren Jeffs go. That claim is made in published copies of the polygamist sect leader's jailhouse revelations, being sold by his followers for $1 to $10. Jeffs' followers are promoting the message through tens of thousands of dollars of paid ads placed in national and regional newspapers. Students of charismatic leaders like Jeffs said it's not unusual for them to claim God will rescue them after they get in trouble with the law. The ads claim that Jesus is coming back soon to judge America for its sins, including abortion and persecuting Jeffs, who is serving a life sentence plus 20 years in a Texas prison for sexually assaulting two young girls. "Cease thy wicked attack, ye government authorities in the United States of America, against my people and my church," reads a revelation Jeffs claims to have received on Dec. 12. According to The Tennessean's rate card, the ads that ran in the paper Friday and Sunday cost $6,903.23. A similar ad in The Washington Post costs about $10,000. Kathleen Flake, associate professor of American religious history at Vanderbilt University, said the ads are aimed at reassuring Jeffs' flock that he is still a legitimate prophet. "The audience for the ads isn't the readers of the newspapers," Flake said. "The audience is the people placing the ads." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Warren Jeffs goes on a media blitz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ben Winslow FOX 13 News KSTU-TV Originally broadcast January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SALT LAKE CITY - The stacks of letters and books addressed to Utah lawmakers clutters a desk on Capitol Hill. "Thus Saith Son Ahman, Even Your Lord Jesus Christ, My Own Will to All Nations on Earth of Full Power to be Fulfilled, Unto All Knowing I, God, Have Spoken Eternal Power Upon All Nations," one book is titled. They are revelations from imprisoned polygamist leader Warren Jeffs, sent out like junk mailings to politicians, schools, libraries, and community leaders all over the United States warning about the end of times -- unless the Fundamentalist LDS Church leader is freed. "They ramble," said Rep. Brian Doughty, D-Salt Lake City. "It's really hard to follow what he's trying to say. I think the gist of what he's trying to say is the end is near and sinners need to be ready." Doughty said he's received 20 or 30 of the revelations within the past year. His fellow lawmakers have also received the revelations. Many have simply tossed them in the trash. "I joked that I wish I had stock in their printer," he said in an interview Monday with FOX 13. One dated Jan. 1, is less about the destruction of the world and more about peace. Those who subject themselves to God's will will be rewarded with "Celestial love-power." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ag land values expected to increase | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Curt Nettinga Hot Springs Star Rapid City Journal Originally published Tuesday, Jan 24 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| HOT SPRINGS - Valuation of crop and non-crop ag land will likely increase in 2012, as the county continues the implementation of productivity valuation, according to Director of Equalizaton Terri Halls from the Assessor's office. Halls presented her 2012 intentions to the Fall River County Commission at its Jan. 17 meeting. She is recommending that crop soil values be increased 10 percent with a 5.3 percent increase to non-crop soil values. Halls noted that values of ag buildings or houses on ag land will not increase. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Latter-day Saints have come marching into Denver, but some are hipper than others | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Denver Westword News Originally published Tuesday, Jan 24 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has gotten off to a rousing start in 2012 — the year of the alleged Apocalypse. County officials across Colorado report receiving numerous mailings from the FLDS, otherwise known as that crazy Mormon sect led by super-creepy imprisoned polygamist Warren Jeffs. The mailings — sent priority mail, United States Postal Service, for about $6 each — come from Vaughan Taylor, who's with Jeffs's FLDS Church in Colorado City, Arizona; within each mailer are individual envelopes addressed to each county commissioner, the county attorney and the sheriff. Most are a couple of pages of "revelation" given to Jeffs; "Thus Saith Jesus Christ to the Leaders in Governing Powers, Also to All Peoples of the Nation of United States of America, My Own Word of Full Power Soon to Take Full Way of Cleansing Power Upon All in This Nation if You Repent Not" was one recent title. Some have a theme — abortion; don't ask, don't tell — while others are just general calls to awakening. But the last was a book that's 149 pages long, one county manager reports. And the mailers conveniently include a price list if a county wants to order reprints. Still, the FLDS would have to sell a lot of reprints to cover the cost of the large advertisements that appeared in the Denver Post and half a dozen other major newspapers around the country this past weekend, warning that the Lord is coming very soon. In those ads, the FLDS appears to report that Christ revealed his impending arrival to Jeffs on December 27 in Palestine, Texas, where Jeffs is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting two of his underage brides. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winston Blackmore at centre of Federal Tax Court fight | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daphne Bramham The Vancouver Sun Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bountiful is not a religious commune and at best one of its leaders, Winston Blackmore, is nothing more than patriarch of a large, polygamous family. That's what Justice Department lawyers will try to prove over the next three weeks in Federal Tax Court. In 2008, Canada Revenue Agency reassessed five years of Blackmore's personal income tax filings and determined that he underestimated his earnings by $1.5 million. This is the first time the Federal Tax Court has heard a challenge to Section 143 of the Tax Act, which describes terms such as congregation, community and even what a religion is. Blackmore and his lawyer argue that the fundamentalist Mormon group fits all of the criteria, and because of that, Blackmore ought to share the tax burden of his personal and corporate earnings with others in the community. But Justice Department lawyer Lynn Burch said in her opening statement that Blackmore and Bountiful fail on every count. They don't all live and work together. There's no doctrinal prohibition on members owning property in their own right. And the members do not devote all of their work and efforts to the common good. Far from being a congregation as defined by the act, Burch said, "At best the appellant [Blackmore] represents a splinter group of a splinter group. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous leader argues no tax foul | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By MICHAEL MUI 24 Hours Vancouver Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous leader Winston Blackmore, the longtime Bountiful elder, is appealing a Canada Revenue Agency claim he underestimated his earnings by $1.5 million over a six-year period. The three-week trial is expected to reveal details of the secretive southeast B.C. community made infamous by RCMP and Crown allegations of child sexual exploitation, sexual assault and procurement. The tax evasion amounts, federal lawyer Lynn Burch said, were earned through Blackmore's shareholder benefits and unreported income benefits through J.R. Blackmore and Sons Ltd., the community's business branch. "This appeal represents one taxpayer's attempt to transfer his tax liability ... on his community without their consent," Burch said. "At the end of the day, the appellant is going to ask this court to find that everything he owned, every property he owned, every transaction of the company he owned, was done in his capacity as (Bountiful's) trustee." Testifying in Vancouver Federal Court Monday, Blackmore said he didn't know, until recently, he was a 40% shareholder in the Blackmore business. He said the company's finances were kept by a family bookkeeper and outside accounting firm. "I never considered I owned those shares myself." The court heard how he regularly filed annual earnings of less than $40,000 in personal income and $5,000 in business income between 2000 and 2004, and again in 2006. The amount contrasts the hundreds of thousands the Canada Revenue Agency found in its reassessment. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist leader Winston Blackmore takes stand in tax-evasion trial | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Suzanne Fournier The Vancouver Province Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamist Winston Blackmore is in Federal Court, fighting the taxman who says he owes as much as $4.3 million in unpaid personal income taxes, business income and GST. Blackmore is arguing through his lawyers that he is the leader of an organized religion that holds all property in common. Blackmore, 54, who is believed to have at least 20 wives and more than 100 biological children, is the self-styled "bishop" of Bountiful, a polygamous community near Creston. A high-flying businessman with logging, manufacturing and farming interests, who owns or leases many vehicles and even an airplane, Blackmore recently pleaded poverty and the inability to pay his legal fees in a separate court matter. That court ruled he could afford to pay his own legal fees. The CRA audited Blackmore's books and then issued re-assessment notices for his tax filings in the years 2000 to 2004, and 2006. On Monday, Blackmore was appealing those notices, alternately quoting from the Bible, then reeling off a long list of the business interests of Bountiful's J.R. Blackmore and Sons. Federal justice lawyer Lynn Burch, for the Canada Revenue Agency, said in court that Blackmore may be the patriarch of a large polygamous family, but it is not an organized religion with assets in a tax-exempt trust. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous leader battling tax bill says community needs special tax status | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Canadian Press via Yahoo! Canada News Originally published Tue, 24 Jan, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - Polygamous leader Winston Blackmore has confirmed he had 21 wives and too many children to remember during a tax trial that has drawn back a curtain revealing some of the secrets in the compound. Blackmore is testifying before the Tax Court of Canada, disputing the government's assertion that he must add an extra $1.5 million to his income from 2000 to 2004 and in 2006. On Tuesday, Blackmore told the court he has 21 wives, but he mentioned eight or nine of them have left him. "These are pretty much who have lived with me as wives," he said. "I've had lots of other people in my life who are not considered wives." When asked by federal government lawyer Lynn Burch about the number of children he has, Blackmore didn't want to go by memory. "In order for me to make an accurate list I would need some time to do that." He acknowledged having 47 children between 2000 and 2006 and said he also has 20 grown children from marriages that date back to 1975. Seven of those children are from his first, legal marriage to Jane Blackmore. She later divorced him. During the period in question for tax purposes, Blackmore testified he didn't live with any of his wives. Instead he lived in the basement of a home while his ailing mother lived upstairs. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Canadian polygamist Winston Blackmore names 21 wives in court | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Blackmore’s family has grown to include more than 110 children | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daphne Bramham The Vancouver Sun Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| It took a long time, punctuated with many pauses, and a prod to look at documents that he'd previously filed. But eventually on Tuesday, Canada's best-known polygamist Winston Blackmore named all 21 of his wives for a Federal Tax Court judge. But there was no way, he said, that he could remember what years he married them. Fortunately, he was asked to list the anniversary dates. But even the list, Blackmore said, doesn't include "other people" who lived with him as wives. He didn't explain what he meant by that. He married 16 Americans. At least 13 of the so-called 'sister-wives' are real sisters to at least one other of Blackmore's wives. On a couple of occasions, he married the sisters on the same day in ceremonies that were presided over by the head of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, who at the time was Rulon Jeffs. In the past, Blackmore has been coy about how many wives and children he has. But on Tuesday, he was under cross-examination on the second day of his tax trial. He's fighting a tax reassessment, which determined that Blackmore had underestimated his personal income by $1.5 million during a five-year period from 2000 to 2006, but excluding 2005. Asked how many children he had at the time, Blackmore wasn't able to say. He had previously filed a list of 47 children born during that six-year period. Pressed by government lawyer Lynn Burch for the total number at the time, Blackmore said he'd have to call home. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous 'minister' Blackmore strains to list wives in tax court fight | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Staff Reporter The Vancouver Province Originally published January 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — B.C. polygamist leader Winston Blackmore paused for a moment during his testimony in court on Tuesday trying to remember which of his 20 plural wives was No. 14. "Let me think about that for a minute," he asked Judge Diane Campbell of the Tax Court of Canada. After more than a minute of silent counting, his head bobbing for each wife, Blackmore had the answer. "Shirley Black," he announced. The leader of a polygamous group of families in Bountiful, B.C., is fighting an audit by Canada Revenue Agency that found he failed to report more than $1.5 million in income in the years 2000 to 2004 and 2006. Along with GST and any penalties and interest imposed, that figure could rise substantially if the government wins its case against him. It is the first time in history an individual is challenging the CRA on a section of the federal Tax Act that defines what constitutes a religion and a congregation. The government says his group is not a congregation under the act. Blackmore claims he is minister to approximately 400 followers in Bountiful and that they constitute a congregation, which should provide them an enormous break on taxes. Blackmore is the main shareholder of J.R. Blackmore and Sons (JRB), a large logging and forest products company with many holdings in southeastern B.C. and Idaho. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Blackmore describes living arrangements with his 21 wives | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Wendy Stueck The Globe and Mail - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - On the stand in federal tax court, Bountiful leader Winston Blackmore confirmed that he had 21 wives, including sisters whom he married on the same day in the same ceremony. "These are pretty much the list of people who lived with me as wives," Mr. Blackmore said on Tuesday, following a series of questions from a Department of Justice lawyer that outlined the names and home communities of the women to whom Mr. Blackmore was "sealed" in ceremonies sanctioned by leaders of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or FLDS. Those women, and their dozens of children, at some point lived in or near Bountiful, sometimes sharing his home on arrangements worked out among the families, he said. "The mothers pretty much decided that," he said. "They fit themselves where everybody fit best." Some of the women – about eight or nine, he said – left following a religious split in the community in 2002. The women were named in a tax proceeding in which the Government of Canada is seeking to prove that Mr. Blackmore, as the patriarch of a large, polygamous family, repeatedly understated his income on tax returns, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars being owed to the government. Mr. Blackmore and his lawyers, relying on provisions of the Income Tax Act that relate to congregations, maintain that Bountiful is a congregation and Mr. Blackmore's tax burden should be shared with the community. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Discriminatory taxes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Greg Engh The Vancouver Province Originally published January 25, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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What is most disturbing with the Winston Blackmore case is not so much that you are tax-exempted if you can demonstrate that you believe in some odd, but nevertheless mainstream, supernatural beliefs. It is the discriminatory application of tax laws against Blackmore.
I assume many other religious dominations with holdings will be closely watching this trial. It is rare that a congregation does not have a pastor "getaway" cabin or beach/ lakefront properties and resorts to "educate" children, and various other tax-sheltered assets. I suspect this might be another case where religious interests trump religious differences and Big Religion will support Prophet Blackmore lest their tax holiday will no longer be celebrated by the Canada Revenue Agency. Greg Engh, Mission | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Canadian polygamist Winston Blackmore admits he forgot one of his 22 wives | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daphne Bramham The Vancouver Sun Originally published January 25, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Despite struggling Tuesday in tax court to name all of his wives, Winston Blackmore admitted Wednesday that he'd forgotten one. Instead of having 21 wives between 2000 and 2006, Blackmore said he had 22. During that period, Blackmore said he had approximately 67 children – 47 of whom were born in that six year period alone. The fundamentalist Mormon is appealing a tax reassessment for that period (excluding 2005) in which the tax collectors determined that he had under-estimated his income by $1.5 million. Prior to his appeal, Canada Revenue Agency calculated that Blackmore owed $4.3 million in back taxes and penalties. Blackmore argues that he and the 500 or so members of his group that live in Bountiful, B.C. should be taxed as a religious congregation with all of their earnings deemed to go into a trust. Blackmore is a former bishop of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, who split with the FLDS when Warren Jeffs proclaimed himself as the church's president. The government rejects Blackmore's contention that his group ought to be taxed as a religious congregation. Lawyers for the Canada Revenue Agency contends that unlike the Hutterite Brethren, Blackmore's group members don't all live and work together, don't share all property and profits in common and are not prohibited from working outside the community. Instead, the government's view is that Blackmore is the patriarch of a large family who is attempting to use a provision of the Tax Act to spread his own personal earnings – for tax purposes – over others. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Boys in Bountiful earn less than minimum wage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Canadian Press CTV News Originally published Wednesday Jan. 25, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — Children as young as 12 in Bountiful, B.C., were working on logging loaders and skidders, earning well below the minimum wage, says the leader of the polygamous community. Winston Blackmore revealed that fact in a Tax Court of Canada trial Wednesday as he attempted to fight a claim that he owes an extra $1.5 million in taxes. Blackmore said the boys from the community did all kinds of summer work for his company J.R. Blackmore and Sons Ltd., including rounding up cattle, bundling fence posts and working at the company's logging operation. He told the court the company got the tax deduction it was entitled to for hiring the children who were issued T-4 slips for the money they earned, but he didn't know if they filed tax returns. Blackmore couldn't recall how much the children -- all boys -- were paid, but agreed when asked by federal government lawyer Lynn Burch that it was probably less than a couple of dollars an hour. He testified the girls all work with their mothers at that age, and the community tried to honour a stipulation made by WorkSafeBC that boys under 12 would not work for the firm. See photo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS starts media blitz | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Revelations' said to be from God via Jeffs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published January 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — A polygamist sect has launched an international media blitz, with ads claiming to be God's revelations running in papers across the United States and Canada. The ads purport to be revelations from God through Warren Jeffs, the imprisoned leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Having been convicted of the sexual assault of a 12-year-old girl and a 15-year-old girl, Jeffs is serving a sentence of life plus 20 years in a prison in Palestine. The alleged revelations were written from Palestine, according to the ads. "Now repent, so I may own and bless all who come unto me," several of the ads say. The ads have appeared in papers such as The Washington Post, The New York Times and the Salt Lake Tribune. In Canada, the ads have run in the Vancouver Sun, according to staff in the advertising department, and the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, according to the paper's website records. The ads may have cost thousands of dollars, even between $10,000 and $12,000 for the Washington Post ad, said Marc Rosenberg, an advertising manager at the Washington Post. The ads include instructions on how to buy more revelations of God written through Warren Jeffs. The other revelations cost between $2 and $10. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opinion: Will the taxwomen bring down Canada's most notorious polygamist? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daphne Bramham Vancouver Sun columnist The Vancouver Sun Originally published January 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winston Blackmore may have finally met his match: the taxwomen. It's money — not polygamy, not a constitutional challenge to religious freedom and not criminal charges — that's landed Canada's best known polygamist in Federal Tax Court testifying under oath and facing a pair of formidable, demanding and, at times, impatient women, Judge Diane Campbell and Justice Department lawyer Lynn Burch. And it's so much money that it's possible the government could bankrupt Blackmore and financially ruin two of his brothers (Kevin and Guy) as well as the companies that the three of them operate. The government claims he under-estimated his income by $1.5 million over five years ending in 2006. Before his appeal, Blackmore and his company had been assessed back taxes, penalties and interest payments amounting to $4.3 million. If he loses the appeal, it's not clear how much more might be added in penalties, interest and court costs. Blackmore claims his group of about 500 fundamentalist Mormons in Bountiful fit the definition of "religious congregation" under the Income Tax Act. The government says, at best, it's a breakaway sect of a breakaway sect (the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). At worst, it's one big, polygamous family looking for a tax break. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Blackmore minces words in testimony | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Dodging tactics frustrate cross-examination | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Andy Ivens The Vancouver Province Originally published January 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. polygamist Winston Blackmore has a church and doesn't have a church, he testified in a landmark case in Tax Court of Canada on Wednesday. Whether trying to finely slice nuances of his words or merely playing word games, Blackmore managed to frustrate not only the government lawyer cross-examining him on his tax returns but also the judge who will end up deciding the case. Formerly a powerful bishop of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS), Blackmore calculated his taxes by dividing the income earned by the prosperous community equally among the 400 or more residents of the Bountiful commune. But government lawyer Lynn Burch is arguing he and his followers in the Creston Valley community are not a congregation, as defined by the Tax Act, so Blackmore's meagre income, reported on his tax returns, was under-reported. The court heard a lengthy history of the FLDS and the schism in 2002 between Blackmore and disgraced FLDS president Warren Jeffs, which resulted in Blackmore being excommunicated. Half the population of Bountiful, including nine of Blackmore's 22 wives, began following the new FLDS leader in their community, James Oler, while the other half stayed true to Blackmore. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Blackmore took out $25K loan to prepare for apocalypse | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By: The Canadian Press CTV News - British Columbia Originally published Thursday Jan. 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In an effort to prepare for the end of the world, B.C. polygamous leader Winston Blackmore says he took out a $25,000 demand loan from the bank. During testimony in the Tax Court of Canada on Thursday, Blackmore said he was directed by a patriarch in the community to get the money to "prepare for the worst." The cash was to be used to gather supplies for a religious sect in southeast B.C., near the Canada-U.S. border, he said. "Another deadline for the end of the world has come and gone. Some 15 deadlines have passed," Blackmore's self-published online newsletter later said in March 2004. "Did you write that?" federal government lawyer Lynn Burch asked Blackmore. "I could have wrote it," he said. He acknowledged there had been at least 15 predictions for the end of the world from the prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or FLDS, an offshoot of the Mormon church. "Perhaps many more," he added. Burch asked if the predictions for the destruction of the world were part of the belief system of the FLDS faith. "I don't think they're part of the tenet, but they certainly are part of the practice," he replied. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tax trial hears details of polygamist's divorce | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Andy Ivens Postmedia News The Vancouver Province Originally published January 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER — B.C. polygamist Winston Blackmore's divorce from his first wife Jane — the only one of his 22 wives recognized by law — was pried open at his trial in the Tax Court of Canada on Thursday. Blackmore is fighting an audit of tax returns he filed over six years which found he under-reported his income by $1.5 million. He is arguing that the large polygamous community of Bountiful, of which he is spiritual leader, works and lives together and shares in any income they accrue, so they should be allowed to spread their income out among the entire group, which numbered around 400 but is now believed to be 1,000. He claims he has a congregation. It is the first case in history in which the section of the Tax Act that defines "congregation" has been challenged. Government lawyer Lynn Burch is trying to prove members of the group do not live and work together, and much of her cross-examination of Blackmore on Thursday backed her up. Burch showed Blackmore documents related to his and Jane Blackmore's separation agreement in 2004. "You were going to sell (a property in Trail, B.C.) and pay Jane $50,000 cash?" asked Burch. "Correct," replied Blackmore. But they were unable to sell it and split the proceeds. Instead, Blackmore gave her a house in Cranbrook, where Jane — a widely respected midwife throughout Creston Valley — moved in with one of their daughters. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous leader defends church status in tax trial | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Canadian Press CBC News British Columbia Originally published January 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous leader Winston Blackmore has come face to face with contradictory statements he has made over his leadership role in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Blackmore is facing charges in federal court in Vancouver for allegedly owing up to $1 million in back taxes. At issue is whether his community in Bountiful B.C. qualifies as a religious congregation under the law and is therefore entitled to special taxation status. Under heated cross examination in Vancouver Wednesday by federal government lawyer Lynn Burch, Blackmore at first refused to answer whether or not he thought himself a prophet. "Answer the question Mr. Blackmore. It's a yes or no," Judge Diane Campbell said. "No," he replied. "You don't have a church?" Burch asked. "I have a church congregation, so I have a church," he answered. But his testimony contrasts an interview Blackmore had with CNN's Larry King, particularly where he insisted twice he didn't have a church. "I don't have a church, for one thing. I am just one of a lot of people who believe in the basic, simple fundamentals of our LDS faith and who are trying to live that way with our families," he told King in a December 2006 interview. "Are you denying these statements?" Burch asked, as she read a transcript of the King interview. "No, I'm not," he said Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bennion Writes to Decriminalize Polygamy | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Danielle Drown The Critic Lyndon State College - Lyndonville, Vermont Originally published Thursday, January 26, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| After a semester filled with traveling to France, writing publications in Montana, and becoming a worldwide renowned scholar on Mormon fundamentalism, social science professor Janet Bennion has returned from sabbatical. Bennion spent the fall semester at her home in Montana working on her book "Polygamy in Primetime", a novel, and an article. The article is about the abuses in a polygamist relationship and has been published in the World Journal of Psychiatry. Her novel, "Strange Love," is a fictional account of a polygamist marriage in which a man's two wives fall in love with each other. Coming from a Mormon, polygamist background herself, Bennion has been working on "Polygamy in Primetime" since the idea for the book was suggested to her at a conference she spoke at last year, where she spoke about her 20 years of research on polygamy. "At the conference I was approached by Brandeis, which is an affiliate of the university press of New England that incorporates Dartmouth and the fancy Ivy Leagues. So it's a wonderful press and they really have produced a good series. My book is the first book in the series," Bennion said. "This is a very good opportunity for me." Bennion has been considered a leading expert on the topic of polygamy, having been called as an expert witness in a Canadian trial. It was when the review for her book came out that Bennion learned she has now been labeled as the worldwide scholar on Mormon fundamentalism. "If there's an expert on this, everyone is now going to start thinking about me," Bennion stated about her new distinction. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Maher strikes (out) again with polygamy punch line | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Joseph Walker Deseret News Originally published Friday, Jan. 27 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Most people don't think that a battered woman is fodder for punch-line material. But most people aren't Bill Maher. The comedian — and we use that term loosely — stooped to a new low on "AC360" recently when he expressed his opinion that Mitt Romney would get the Republican presidential nomination, "and then I think (President Barack) Obama is going to beat him like a runaway sister wife." Bah-dum-bum. One assumes Maher's thought process flowed something like this: Romney = Mormon = polygamy = dirty old man and young sister wives = sister wife running away and being abused for it = funny. Or something like that. Never mind that the abuse of women and children in contemporary polygamy is a real and serious problem. Forget that Romney's faith, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, abandoned the practice of polygamy 120 years ago. Never let the truth get in the way of a good joke. Or a bad joke, as the case may be. Program host Anderson Cooper was obviously flustered by Maher's reference. But rather than challenge the comment, he smiled weakly and noted that he hadn't heard "a FLDS (Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints) punch line in quite a while." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Johnson allowed to gather evidence | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Kevin Jenkins The Spectrum Originally published January 27, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ST. GEORGE - A federal judge overseeing the Federal Trade Commission's lawsuit against St. George businessman Jeremy Johnson will allow Johnson to continue to gather evidence for his defense, but the court is permitting federal prosecutors in Utah to object to any subpoenas they think will adversely affect a separate criminal case they filed against Johnson. "We're very happy. It's something we can definitely work with," U.S. Attorney's Office Public Affairs Officer Melodie Rydalch said following the hour-long hearing in Las Vegas on Thursday. "Anytime we have a concern about a subpoena related to Mr. Johnson ... we can call it to his (the judge's) attention, and he will throw it out," Rydalch said. "He did that today. There were quite a few (thrown out)." Johnson also claimed a victory in the matter, noting that the ruling did not provide prosecutors with blanket permission to stop all his subpoenas. "The judge said (to prosecutors), 'You'd better not just do what you did here. You'd better be pretty specific about why it affects the criminal case,'" Johnson said. Johnson and nine other defendants are accused in the Nevada FTC lawsuit of using the St. George-based Internet marketing enterprise iWorks and more than 50 related corporate entities to lure customers into "bogus government-grant and money-making schemes" and then charging subsequent fees to customers' credit cards without permission. The companies' assets have been seized by a court-appointed receiver, and much of the property has been sold at public auction, even though a final judgment has not yet been issued in the lawsuit. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "Holding Out Help" Helping Polygamist Families | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Heidi Hatch KUTV 2News Originally broadcast Friday, January 27 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (KUTV) PARK CITY - A powerful group gathered in Park City tonight to shine the Sundance light on polygamy's victims. "Holding out Help" - a local non profit group - gathered some of the most powerful voices helping Utah's fundamentalist polygamist groups. It was a chance to open the eyes of many in our community to the lives of the hundreds of FLDS exiled from their own communities of Hilldale and Colorado City. The real reason they were there was to raise money to help the families forced out of their homes as Warren Jeffs cracks down on his followers while he's locked up behind bars. CNN anchor Anderson Cooper taped a message to those attending tonight's fundraiser to talk about the stark realities he's seen in his years of reporting on the FLDS. The real stars were a few of the lost boys forced out of their homes and away from everything they held dear. Joseph Broadbent was 17 when he was forced into the outside world. He was homeless, penniless and as close to hopeless at it gets. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Organization supports polygamist refugees | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Reported by: Cristina Rendon ABC 4 News Originally broadcast January 27, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PARK CITY (ABC 4 News) – Women and children who have fled a polygamist lifestyle are seeking refuge in an organization aimed at helping them assimilate into mainstream culture. The organization, founded in 2008, is called Holding Out Help – Helping Encouraging and Loving Polygamists. According to Director Tonia Tewell, the organization provides resources and guidance for those desiring to leave their polygamist communities. The group provides safe houses, food, clothing, counseling, mentoring, job training, education and referral services for women and children trying to assimilate in a foreign world. A fundraising event held Friday was attended by over 100 people. Sam Brower, a private investigator who contributed greatly to the government's case against FLDS Leader Warren Jeffs, said the purpose of the organization is to let people know that abusing children is not okay. Jon Krakauer wrote a book on polygamy and took in a child from the FLDS Church. "It's a growing problem," Krakauer said. "To be taken out of a 19th century lifestyle and plunged into a different world is a huge challenge." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Event raises money for people fleeing from FLDS Church | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Jennifer Stagg KSL-TV Originally broadcast January 27th, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| PARK CITY — Sundance is full of movie premiers and celebrity sightings. But there was a different kind of exclusive event Friday night, one aimed at raising money for former members of the FLDS Church. There were roughly 100 people in attendance, including former FLDS member Elissa Wall. She fled the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints six years ago. "I have moments where it feels like a lifetime ago — a completely different lifetime — and then there's moments where it feels like yesterday," Wall said. She stood up to FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, which ultimately contributed to his arrest and imprisonment. Before that, she says she was a lot like 18-year-old Natalie Knudson. "My dad has two wives and 19 kids," Knudson said. Her polygamist father agreed to letting her leave Colorado City, but not before he forced her to get married at age 17. She is now divorced and starting over. Knudson is enrolled in college, working on her nursing degree, and she's finding support in the nonprofit group Holding Out Help. "It's a lot different. There's a lot more freedom — and my dad was really strict so I couldn't do anything without being watched by him or one of the moms," she said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Apocalypse costs pile up for B.C. polygamist leader | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Andy Ivens Postmedia News The Victoria Times Colonist - Victoria, B.C. Originally pbulished January 27, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| B.C. polygamist leader Winston Blackmore revealed in court Thursday he was compelled to pay money 15 times to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to prepare for various apocalypses. The request for money from the church was made over a 20-year period, with the most recent payment being $25,000. Blackmore noted in an article he wrote for a Bountiful publication that the president of the church predicted the apocalypse 15 times in a span of 20 years. Blackmore further testified at his landmark tax trial that he personally owned various properties that were not transferred to a trust fund for the polygamous commune he led. He admitted this contravened the dictates of the church. Blackmore is fighting an audit of tax returns he filed over six years which found he under-reported his income by $1.5 million. Under cross-examination by Lynn Burch, a lawyer conducting the federal government's case against him, Blackmore admitted that one of the basic principles of the church is to "consecrate" - or transfer - all privately held property to an entity called the United Effort Plan trust. The trust, of which Blackmore was the sole Canadian trustee up until his excommunication from the church in 2002, held the title to the property in Bountiful. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Polygamous leader says he took out $25,000 to prepare for end of the world | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By: Terri Theodore The Canadian Press National Breaking News Brandon Sun - Brandon, Manitoba Originally published January 27, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - B.C. polygamous leader Winston Blackmore says he took out a $25,000 from the bank to prepare for the end of the world. During testimony in the Tax Court of Canada on Thursday, Blackmore said he was directed by a patriarch in the community to get the money to "prepare for the worst." The cash was to be used to gather supplies for the religious sect in southeast B.C., near the Canada-U.S. border, he said. But it wasn't meant to be. "Another deadline for the end of the world has come and gone. Some 15 deadlines have passed," Blackmore's self-published online newsletter later said in March 2004. "Did you write that?" federal government lawyer Lynn Burch asked Blackmore. "I could have wrote it," he said. He acknowledged there had been at least 15 predictions for the end of the world from the prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, or FLDS. "Perhaps many more," he added. Burch asked if the predictions for the destruction of the world were part of the belief system of the FLDS faith, a splinter from the Mormon church. "I don't think they're part of the tenet, but they certainly are part of the practice," he replied. Blackmore is testifying as he fights allegations that he made an extra $1.5 million above what he claimed on his taxes from 2000 to 2004 and in 2006. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| From the public editor: Readers correct to question print ad | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sylvia Stead — Public Editor The Globe and Mail blog - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Friday, January 27, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| In Friday's paper we ran an ad with the words "Revelation of the Lord Jesus Christ Given to President Warren S. Jeffs". Some readers wondered why such an ad appeared in The Globe and Mail. We do review ads, but unfortunately this one was not caught. Mr. Jeffs, as you may know, is a polygamist sect leader in the United States who was convicted last year of sexually assaulting two children, one of whom was one of his child brides. The ad, which was due to run again, has been cancelled. According to the Salt Lake Tribune, the ad has appeared in several newspapers across the United States. We thank the readers who drew this to our attention. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS Advertising | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By: KLST News KLST - San Angelo, Texas Originally broadcast January 28, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Members of the polygamous FLDS church have advertisements running in newspapers in Canada and some parts of the United States this week. Members of the group who live on the Arizona/Utah border reportedly bought the ads to run some of imprisoned prophet Warren Jeffs' revelations. They also direct readers to the "FLDS-dot-org" website to order some of Jeffs' revelations priced from one to ten dollars. Former spokesman willie Jessop -- who no longer supports Jeffs -- said today the mass advertising is a "fraud". Jessop said Jeffs does not allow followers -- including those at the Schleicher County YFZ -- to have written copies of any of his revelations. Jessop sees the move as an act of desperation. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Is Polygamy Really So Awful? | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| A new study shows that despite what you see on reality TV, plural marriage isn't very good for society. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Libby Copeland Slate Magazine - Washington, D.C. Originally published Monday, Jan. 30, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| These are boom times for memoirs about growing up in, marrying into or escaping from polygamous families. Sister wives appear as minor celebrities in the pages of People, piggybacking on their popular reality TV show. And oh yes, we have a presidential candidate whose great-grandfather was an actual bona fide polygamist. Americans are fixated these days on polygamy, and it's fair to say we don't know how to feel about it. Polygamy evokes both fascination and revulsion - the former when Chloe Sevigny is involved, and the latter when it is practiced by patently evil men like Osama Bin Laden and Warren Jeffs, the fundamentalist Mormon leader who had a thing for underage wives. At the same time, the practice of plural marriage is so outside mainstream American culture, so far in the past for many Westerners, that it has come to be regarded as almost quaint. What's so wrong with it, if it works for some people? In counterculture circles, the practice of polyamory, or open partnerships, is supposed to be having some sort of moment. All of which explains why, in response to the argument by conservatives like Rick Santorum and Antonin Scalia that gay marriage could be a slippery slope leading to polygamy, some feminists, lefties, and libertarians have wondered aloud whether plural marriage is really so bad. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Fair trial | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Opinion The Spectrum Originally published January 30, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The case against Jeremy Johnson - a St. George businessman who is, perhaps, best known for his work as a search-and-rescue helicopter pilot - stirs many emotions. Johnson and nine other defendants have been accused by the Federal Trade Commission of using his business, iWorks, and other corporate entities to lure customers into what the government says are Internet scams. Johnson also is facing criminal charges in Utah. According to prosecutors, millions of dollars in damage have been inflicted on would-be customers. Indeed, the charges are serious. If Johnson is convicted in a fair trial, he deserves to lose his freedom and treasure. But the key words there are "if" and "fair." Thursday, the courts shot down a motion by federal prosecutors to prevent Johnson, who is operating as his own attorney, from issuing subpoenas in the FTC case. Prosecutors believe the contact with witnesses could impact the criminal prosecution in Utah. The courts stepped up in defense of constitutional rights by denying the prosecutors' motion. Johnson is accused of bilking millions of dollars from many people. If the court finds those allegations to be true, then Johnson deserves punishment. But until he's convicted, he has the right to defend himself. And part of that defense includes gathering statements and evidence. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS bigamy trial moved to Midland | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No date set, but it will be in Midland | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Matthew Waller San Angelo Standard-Times Originally published January 30, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SAN ANGELO, Texas — The bigamy trial of a former leader of a polygamist sect has been moved from San Angelo to Midland. Wendell Loy Nielsen, 71, was once president of the polygamist Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. His trial originally had been scheduled for Jan. 24, and at a hearing Monday morning, 51st District Judge Barbara Walther ordered the change of venue. Prosecutors and Nielsen's attorney met with the judge outside the courtroom for about an hour and returned to establish that all parties had agreed to the change. Walther and her staff still will preside over the trial, she said. "We're in the process of finalizing" a trial date, Walther said. She mentioned March 21 as an option. Nielsen is charged with three counts of third-degree bigamy. He faces a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. Eric Nichols, a special prosecutor working for the Office of the Attorney General of Texas, said the judge has considered factors such as pretrial publicity and the number of FLDS trials that have occurred in the 51st District. The district includes five counties, and trials for FLDS members have occurred in Tom Green, Schleicher and Coke counties. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FLDS attorneys seek dismissal of charges | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By JIM SECKLER Mohave Daily News Originally published Monday, January 30, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| KINGMAN — Whether the Mohave County Attorney's Office should prosecute two former officials of Colorado City Fire District were discussed Friday in Superior Court. Colorado City Manager David William Darger and former Colorado City Fire Chief Jacob Leonard Barlow are charged with the alleged misuse of the fire district's credit cards for personal use such as purchases at restaurants, grocery stores, discount department stores and food and lodging at an Idaho resort, which was claimed to be for fire training. The fire district money was allegedly deposited into the suspect's own bank account. The county attorney's office began their investigation in 2008. On April 6, 2010, Mohave County law enforcement officers raided the Colorado City and Hildale, Utah fire stations as well as Darger and Barlow's homes. Colorado City, along with Hildale, is the home of the polygamist sect of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints church. Barlow's attorney, Mike Piccarreta, who once represented Warren Jeffs on his Arizona charges, argued that since Mohave County Attorney's Office has represented the fire district in the past that would have an appearance of impropriety if it prosecuted this case. It was also the prosecutor's job to provide advice to the fire district in civil matters. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| The polygamy tax break | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winston Blackmore says his "congregation" is eligible for special tax status | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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by Ken MacQueen Macleans Magazine - Toronto, Ontario Originally published Monday, January 30, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| He quoted the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and the Doctrine and Covenants of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, but in Judge Diane Campbell's Vancouver courtroom over the next three weeks, polygamous leader Winston Blackmore is confronting another book of fire, brimstone and unyielding dictates: the Canadian Income Tax Act. By his own admission, 55-year-old Blackmore, leader of a breakaway sect of fundamentalist Mormons living in Bountiful in southeastern B.C., has faced police investigations since 1990. But while he escaped convictions for the widespread practice of polygamy, and allegations of child exploitation of young brides, it's Canada Revenue Agency tax auditors who have laid low the once all-powerful bishop of Bountiful. At issue is whether the polygamous group of some 450 that Blackmore leads constitutes a "congregation" eligible for special tax status under the arcane "Communal Organizations" section of the tax act. The blunt assessment by Justice Department lawyer Lynn Burch is no. In opening comments in the federal Tax Court appeal, she called him merely the "patriarch of a large polygamous family." What little legitimacy that he had as a bishop of the Fundamentalist Church of Latter-Day Saints ended in 2002, when the community split in two and Blackmore was excommunicated from the controversial church. He represents, she said, "a splinter group of a splinter group." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Winston Blackmore federal tax case hinges on church issue | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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By Daphne Bramham Vancouver Sun Originally published January 31, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VANCOUVER - What is a church? It's the key issue before the Federal Tax Court in the trial to determine whether Winston Blackmore and his family - fundamentalist Mormon polygamists - qualify to be taxed as a group and not as individuals. At stake for Blackmore is a personal reassessment of $1.5 million and $4.3 million in unpaid taxes, fines and interests for both him and his companies. On Tuesday, an expert witness hired by Blackmore suggested that within the Mormon tradition, it's not as easy as it might appear or as Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney might like it. "There has been continual dispute about who is the head of the LDS church," John Walsh, an independent scholar and member of the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, said Tuesday. Asked whether it's fair to say that from to say that there has been no consensus since Joseph Smith's death in 1844 until the present, Walsh replied: "Yes." Rather than a single church, Walsh uses the term "Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints" as an umbrella to describe everything from the mainstream LDS church in Salt Lake City to the Community of Christ (which was formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and was founded by Smith's son) to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (whose president Warren Jeffs is in jail for sexual misconduct with minors) and a raft of others. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| DA: Move of bigamy trial won't interrupt Midland County caseload | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Audrie Palmer My West Texas - Midland, Texas Originally published Tuesday, January 31, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Midland County District Attorney Teresa Clingman said the move of a bigamy trial from San Angelo to Midland won't interrupt the regular caseload or handling of cases. On Monday, state District Judge Barbara Walther ordered the trial of Wendell Loy Nielsen, a former lieutenant to polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs, to be moved to Midland. The trial had been scheduled for Jan. 24, but possibly could start March 21, the Associated Press reported. Nielsen, 71, is the former president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. He renounced a plea deal in November and will go to trial on three counts of felony bigamy. He's accused of marrying three women in 2005. Clingman said the transfer and jurisdiction of the case could be a benefit to the local economy, with many being put up in local hotels, eating meals at restaurants and potentially using services to make last minute prints or copies. "This could benefit local businesses, as well," she said. Midland County jurors will be used for the trial, but those in San Angelo handling the case will bring their own judge, court reporter, attorneys and bailiffs while they use the courthouse facilities, authorities said. Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opinion: Religious beliefs keep money flowing into 'church company' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Opinion Vancouver Sun columnist Originally published January 31, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ken Oler has two wives and 21 children. Until 2002, he worked for "the church company." For 17 years, he earned $1,600 a month supervising the logging, trucking and road-building operations. Of course, the family got child tax credits and his wife, Alice Blackmore, earned a teaching salary from Bountiful Elementary-Secondary School that averaged about $800 a month. After every paycheque, Oler went to the bank and took out cash equivalent to 10 per cent of the family's total income. Oler would then hand it over to the bishop of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) who would record it in the church record. The bishop was Winston Blackmore. Blackmore was also his boss and the 40-per-cent owner of J.R. Blackmore & Sons — the "church company." Oler could have earned more working somewhere else. But, he said, "It was a company that provided work for [people in] the community and helped do what was needed to provide infrastructure for the community." The Olers made ends meet by bartering labour for food and helping others in the community tend the 15-acre communal garden. They never saved. "In this community, we knew they were going to be there for us so there was not real need to build up a banking account." Any extra money Oler had, he gave to Blackmore to redistribute. He never asked for an accounting of where it was spent. Oler said he could see the "really tangible results." Read more | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| "What Peace There May Be" by Susanna Barlow Susanna Barlow's book is available for sale from The HOPE Organization Order it now | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Here we go again. 2 different reporters with The Salt Lake Tribune have contacted The HOPE Organization requesting information and statements on issues regarding the FLDS. On April 18, 2011, we received their latest request to speak with us about the destruction of $15,000 of our property. Thousands of our donated books were being stored in Colorado City awaiting the opening of a Mohave County Public Library branch. On Friday, April 15, 2011 our library books were removed from the building, put into a pile and then burned by arsonists. Thousands of donated books, which were not burned, were stolen and taken from the building in Arizona, trucked to numerous locations in Utah, and given away to various libraries, schools and thrift stores. Some of these books were thrown away and some were sold - books which are gone for good and we'll never be able to recover them.
In late December, 2007, an attorney representing The Salt Lake Tribune newspaper sent a certified letter to The HOPE Organization threatening to sue HOPE unless we removed EVERY Salt Lake Tribune newspaper article from our non-profit educational web site. Because these 2 reporters were not aware of what their own employer had done to threaten to sue our little charity that's just trying to assist victims of polygamy, perhaps others are also not aware of the actions of The Salt Lake Tribune. So we decided to put the link back up regarding this situation. Read about this lawsuit instigated by The Salt Lake Tribune in late December, 2007. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Read Warren Jeffs' "Revelations" from prison warning of the destruction of the United States, sent to Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff's office November 14, 2011 | |
| Read Mike Emack's Motion for Rehearing regarding his conviction, filed in the Texas Third District Court of Appeals October 11, 2011 | |
| Read the Utah Attorney General Office's Memorandum in Support of Motion to Dismiss for Lack of Standing regarding the "Sisters Wives" TV family, filed in the United States District Court of Utah September 2, 2011 | |
| See court exhibit 992 containing 55 pages listing 550 bigamous "marriages" Warren Jeffs participated in either as "Mouth" or "Witness" | |
| Read the Texas Third District Court of Appeals' Opinion affirming the conviction of Michael Emack, filed August 26, 2011 | |
| Follow the TEXAS case on charges that Warren personally "spiritually married" little girls ranging in age from 12 to 14 and read the Court filings for and against Warren Steed Jeffs | |
| Follow the ARIZONA trial on charges of incest and charges of sexual contact with a minor and read the Court filings for and against Warren Steed Jeffs | |
| Follow the UTAH "Rape as an Accomplice" trial and read the Court filings for and against Warren Steed Jeffs | |
| Follow the numerous Texas cases of the YFZ men indicted for molesting little girls and read the Court filings regarding these men | |
| See court exhibit 992 containing 55 pages listing 550 bigamous "marriages" Warren Jeffs participated in either as "Mouth" or "Witness" | |
| See court exhibit 9 from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 9A from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 9B from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 9C from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 15G from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 22H from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 23E from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 28 from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 28A from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 28B from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 28C from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 50A from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 50B from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 50E from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 70B from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 70C from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 175.38 from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 175.39 from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 603 from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| See court exhibit 604 from the Warren Jeffs Texas trial for sexual assault of 2 little girls | |
| Read Judge Denise Lindberg's Ruling and Motion on Order to Award Costs and Expenses Chargeable to the State of Utah to have the Utah Attorney General's Office pay the expenses for the United Effort Plan Trust's fiduciary, filed in the Third District Court on August 1, 2011 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' third Motion for Re-hearing/Re-consideration of Defendant's First Amended Motion to Recuse Trial Judge filed in Schleicher County Court August 1, 2011 | |
| Read Judge John Hyde's Order Denying Amended Motions to Recuse Trial Judge filed in the Texas 51st Judicial District Court on July 19, 2011 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' latest attorney Emily Detoto's Amended Motion for Re-hearing/Re-consideration of Defendant's First Amended Motion to Recuse Trial Judge filed in Schleicher County Court July 15, 2011 | |
| Read the State of Texas' Second Supplemental Witness List filed in Schleicher County Court July 15, 2011 | |
| Read the State of Texas' State's Application for Trial Supoenas filed in Schleicher County Court July 13, 2011 | |
| Read Wallace Jeffs' Complaint against Warren Jeffs, Lyle Jeffs, Merril Jessop, Wendell Nielsen and Amy Jeffs regarding the safety of his children, filed in Washington County, Utah Fifth District Court on July 12, 2011 | |
| Read the State of Texas' State's Application for Trial Subpoenas filed in Schleicher County Court July 6, 2011 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Defendant's Designation of Expert Witnesses filed in Schleicher County Court July 6, 2011 | |
| Read the State of Texas' Application for Trial Subpoenas for 78 of Warren Jeff' "wives", filed in Schleicher County Court July 5, 2011 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' latest attorney Emily Detoto's Motion for Re-hearing/Re-consideration of Defendant's First Amended Motion to Recuse Trial Judge filed in Schleicher County Court July 1, 2011 | |
| Read Winston Blackmore's Notice of Motion filed in the Tax Court of Canada May 26, 2011 | |
| Read the US District Court for the District of Arizona's Order regarding the discrimination lawsuit against Hildale-Colorado City Utilities, Twin City Power, and the City of Hildale, filed May 16, 2011 | |
| Read the Utah Division of Corporation's Statement on FLDS filing status regarding the battle over who runs the FLDS church, issued May 5, 2011 | |
| Read The HOPE Organizations's Request for Public Record to receive the evidence collected by the Colorado City Police Department regarding the arson and theft of thousand of donated library books, mailed to the Town of Colorado City April 28, 2011 | |
| Read the Sworn declaration of William Edson Jessop filed with the Utah Department of Commerce April 28, 2011 regarding his being the person appointed to be the Prophet of the FLDS church | |
| Read the Tenth Circuit Court's Order Staying the District Court's Preliminary Injunction Order and Show Cause Order regarding the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 27, 2011 | |
| Read the UEP Special Fiduciary Bruce Wisan's Brief Requesting Continued Stay of Preliminary Injunction Order in the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 22, 2011 | |
| Read the UEP Special Fiduciary Bruce Wisan's Exhibits Supporting Continued Stay of Preliminary Injunction Order in the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 22, 2011 | |
| Read the Arizona Attorney General's Memorandum in Support of Stay of Preliminary Injunction Order in the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 22, 2011 | |
| Read the Intervenors' Brief Supporting Continuation of Stay Order and Urging Certification of State Law Question in the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 22, 2011 | |
| Read Ruth Steed's Order of Protection issued against Alan Jeffs on April 18, 2011 by the Moccasin Justice Court | |
| Read the Tenth Circuit Court's Order denying the FLDS' "Motion to Reconsider and/or Clarify Stay Order Dated April 15, 2011" regarding the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 15, 2011 | |
| Read the FLDS' Motion to Reconsider and/or Clarify Stay Order Dated April 15, 2011 regarding Judge Lindberg's filings in the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 15, 2011 | |
| Read the Tenth Circuit Court's Stay Order regarding Judge Lindberg's emergency motion to stay the order for preliminary injunction regarding the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 15, 2011 | |
| Read the FLDS' Abbreviated Response to Notice of Information Relevant to Emergency Motion to Stay and Request for Immediate Decisision regarding Judge Lindberg's filings in the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 14, 2011 | |
| Read the Tenth Circuit Court's Order requiring the FLDS to file a response by 5:00 PM on Monday, April 18, 2011 to Judge Lindberg's emergency motion to stay the order for preliminary injunction regarding the UEP case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 14, 2011 | |
| Read Judge Denise Lindberg's Notice of Information Relevant to Emergency Motion to Stay and Request for Immediate Decision regarding Judge Benson's Order to Show Cause against Judge Lindberg concerning her Order dated April 11, 2011 in the United Effort Plan Trust case, filed in the US Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 14, 2011 | |
| Read the trespassing citation issued to William E. (Timpson) Jessop on April 14, 2011 by the Colorado City police | |
| Read Rod Parkers's Letter to Jeff Shields written on April 12, 2011 requesting that all UEP Trust documents be turned over to him | |
| Read the FLDS church's Affidavit of Boyd L. Knudson filed with the Utah Department of Commerce April 11, 2011 "evidencing that Warren Steed Jeffs has been sustained as the President of the FLDS" | |
| Read the FLDS church's Affidavit of Boyd L. Knudson filed with the Utah Department of Commerce April 11, 2011 "evidencing that Warren Steed Jeffs has been sustained as the Presiding Bishop of the FLDS" | |
| Read Judge Denise Lindberg's Ruling and Order Directing the Special Fiduciary to Retain UEP Trust Assests Pending Further Order of this Court regarding Federal Judge Dee Benson returning control of the United Effort Plan Trust to the FLDS, filed in the Utah Third District Court on April 11, 2011 | |
| Read Federal Judge Dee Benson's Preliminary Injunction Order returning control of the United Effort Plan Trust to the FLDS, filed in the US District Court for Utah April 8, 2011 | |
| Read the FLDS church's Affidavit of Boyd L. Knudson filed with the Utah Department of Commerce April 4, 2011 stating that on April 3, 2011 4000 church members declared Warren Jeffs as the President of the FLDS church and William E. Jessop is not part of the church | |
| Read the FLDS church's Affidavit of Boyd L. Knudson filed with the Utah Department of Commerce April 4, 2011 stating that on April 3, 2011 4000 church members declared Warren Jeffs as the Presiding Bishop of the FLDS church and William E. Jessop is not part of the church | |
| Read the Utah Division of Corporations and Commercial Code's Administrative hold notice placed on both entities filing for control of the FLDS church, per Division Director Kathy Berg March 31, 2011 | |
| Read the FLDS church's Corporation Registration Information Change Form filed by Boyd L. Knudson with the Utah Department of Commerce March 31, 2011 removing William E. Jessop and renaming Warren Jeffs as the President and Corporation Sole for the FLDS church | |
| Read Texas Ranger J. Nick Hanna's Affidavit #2 regarding numerous FLDS child brides and married to older men in the US between 1990-2004, filed March 30, 2011 in the Supreme Court of British Columbia | |
| Read the FLDS church's Corporation Registration Information Change Form filed by William E. Jessop with the Utah Department of Commerce March 28, 2011 removing Warren Jeffs and naming himself as the President and Corporation Sole for the FLDS church | |
| Read Mike Emack's Reply to the State's Brief regarding his appeal, filed in the Texas Third District Court of Appeals March 25, 2011 | |
| Read Texas Ranger J. Nick Hanna's Affidavit #1 regarding ten child brides smuggled from Bountiful, BC and married to older men in the US between 2003-2006, filed March 2, 2011 in the Supreme Court of British Columbia | |
| Below are some interesting items that are not "Current Events", but are included here because they are significant to current events. | |
| FLDS documentary 3 years in the making - Banking on Heaven | |
| Watch the Banking on Heaven trailer | |
| Watch the documentary Damned to Heaven | |
| Watch the documentary Banished: The Lost Boys of Polygamy | |
National Geographic Channel's "Inside Polygamy: Life Is Bountiful" documentary first broadcast February 10, 2010 | |
2. FLDS Secrets - Beyond The Reach from Brett Buchanan on Vimeo. | |
| Listen to Warren Jeffs speak about the black race | |
| Listen to Warren Jeffs speak about the "Seed of Cain" and "pingy pangy" music from the black race | |
| Read Warren Jeffs's Warning to the Nation sent to President Obama, many Cabinet members and members of Congress February 28, 2011 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs's Warning to the Nation signature pages (part 1) sent to President Obama, many Cabinet members and members of Congress February 28, 2011 - THIS IS A VERY LARGE FILE | |
| Read Warren Jeffs's Warning to the Nation signature pages (part 2) sent to President Obama, many Cabinet members and members of Congress February 28, 2011 - THIS IS A VERY LARGE FILE | |
| See the KSTU-TV Fox 13 Utah Photo Gallery Polygamist Fashions | |
| Watch the November 18, 2010 KSL story on Warren Jeffs' fight against being extradited to Texas Video Courtesy of KSL.com | |
| Watch the November 15, 2010 KSL story on Warren Jeffs' fight against being extradited to Texas Video Courtesy of KSL.com | |
| Read the FLDS church's Proclamation to the Government Officials of the United States of America and to the Government Officials of Canada written by Warren Jeffs while he was in jail in Kingman, Arizona | |
| Watch FOX 13's Katy Carlyle's February 22, 2010 story about Heber Holm's Polygamy Tour of Short Creek | |
| Read the flyer for The Polygamy Experience Tour | |
| Read the Amended and Restated Declaration of Trust of the United Order of Texas (creating ANOTHER new FLDS Church and religious Trust) filed in Schleicher County, Texas October 30, 2009 | |
| Read Sam Brower's memo comparing the FLDS to the Mafia written October, 2009 | |
| Read Special Warranty Deed (transferring the YFZ Ranch from the Texas Heritage Trust to the new Texas Stake of Zion Trust) filed in Schleicher County, Texas September 30, 2009 | |
| Read the December 31, 2008 Declaration of Trust of the Texas Stake of Zion (creating a new FLDS Church and religious Trust) filed in Schleicher County, Texas September 30, 2009 | |
| Read the Court Transcript of the Testimony of Merril Jessop regarding Carolyn Jessop's Petition for Child Support discussing the YFZ Ranch property and the Texas Heritage Trust, given in Schleicher County, Texas September 28, 2009 | |
Watch some of Willie Jessop's testimony at the April 14, 2009 Texas House Human Services Committee hearing on the YFZ raid courtesy of the Austin American-Statesman | |
| Video Courtesy of KSL.com Watch the KSL Video Last FLDS youth in custody could soon return to family broadcast on March 13, 2009 | |
| During the January 23, 2009 deposition of Merril Jessop, court exhibits were included in his deposition. One item was a budget from the Short Creek Stake reporting their tithings paid and how these monies were being spent to support the other FLDS compounds | |
| Read the Budget Estimates from the Short Creek Stake and see where their hard-earned money was going | |
| During the January 23, 2009 deposition of Merril Jessop, court exhibits were included in his deposition. One collection was Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record from January 16, 2007 - June 6, 2007. Excerpts of this included the "History of events of Warren Steed Jeffs while in prison (Purgatory Jail) in Washington County, Utah." Below are some of these Personal Priesthood Records | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record PART 1 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record PART 2 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record PART 3 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record PART 4 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record PART 5 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Priesthood Record PART 6 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| During the January 23, 2009 deposition of Merril Jessop, court exhibits were included in his deposition. One collection was Warren Jeffs' Personal Dictations Below are some of these Personal Dictations fom 2005 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Dictations PART 1 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Dictations PART 2 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Dictations PART 3 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Dictations PART 4 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| Read Warren Jeffs' Personal Dictations PART 5 court exhibit released February 9, 2009 | |
| During the January 23, 2009 deposition of Merril Jessop, court exhibits were included in his deposition. One item was Warren Jeffs' directive to his brother Lyle Jeffs to notify faithful followers they no longer held the Priesthood | |
| Read the bad news given to some FLDS members who were told that they had to repent from afar (leave UEP property) and their families were "released" from them in the Short Creek Assignment from July 12, 2005 | |
| Read the FLDS spokesman Willie Jessop's deposition court transcript recorded January 26, 2009 | |
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MR. SCHAFFER: At this time Mr. Jessop will refuse to answer that question based upon his Fifth Amendment privilege as well — under the federal constitution as well as the state constitution. As counsel propounding these questions knows there are federal investigations involving money laundering, mail fraud, wire fraud, Mann Act violations in federal court, in addition to any allegations being investigated by the state authorities.
MS. MALONIS: For the record, this counsel is not aware of that. MR. SCHAFFER: You are now. | |
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Watch a video of Willie Jessop taken during his deposition January 26, 2009 | |
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Watch more of the video of Willie Jessop taken during his deposition January 26, 2009 | |
| Read YFZ Ranch leader Merril Jessop's deposition court transcript recorded January 23, 2009 | |
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Watch a video of Merril Jessop taken during his deposition January 23, 2009 | |
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Watch more of the video of Merril Jessop taken during his deposition January 23, 2009 | |
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Watch even more of the video of Merril Jessop taken during his deposition January 23, 2009 | |
| Read the court Notice of Intention to take Oral Deposition from Merril Jessop filed January 16, 2009 | |
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Watch the Eldorado Success Video of Willie Jessop meeting with Schleicher County Commissioners on January 12, 2009 | |
| Read the court Subpoena to Compel Appearance for Depostion for Merril Jessop dated January 12, 2009 | |
| Read the Statement of Dan Fischer dated August 1, 2008 | |
| Watch the CBS 48 Hours Mystery YFZ Ranch video where Peter Van Sant talks with Willie Jessop about the April 2008 raid of the YFZ ranch. | |
| Read the Bishop's Record of Families at the YFZ Ranch released May 1, 2008 | |
| Watch the CBS Early Show video where the YFZ Ranch men speak out from April 26, 2008 | |
| Watch the April 16, 2008 Good Morning America interview with Nancy, Marie and Esther from the YFZ Ranch in Eldorado, Texas | |
| Watch the April 15, 2008 CBS Evening News coverage by Hari Sreenivasan on the YFZ raid and the removal of the FLDS children | |
| Watch Neal Karlinsky's April 14, 2008 report for ABC World News Tonight | |
| Read the Statement for the Media sent by Wally Bugden on December 5, 2007 - announcing Warren has resigned as President of the Corporation of the President of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Inc. | |
| Read the July 9, 2007 Memorandum in Support of Motion in Limine Regarding Statements of the Defendant unsealed by the court on November 6, 2007 - This is the "I am not the Prophet" confession | |
| Watch Warren Jeffs tell Nephi that he is "not the prophet" and "never was the prophet" | |
| See the Los Angeles Time's Photo Gallery from stories published May 2006 | |
| Read the February 21, 2005 Training Given by President Warren S. Jeffs On the Places of Refuge to a Group of Men regarding the "keep sweet" training on "how to live and be Zion" and be invited to live on the lands of refuge | |
| See the Photo Gallery from Alta Academy 1988 to 1996 | |
| For more information on the April 2008 raid on the FLDS YFZ Ranch in Eldorado, Texas, visit our web page
Don't Mess with Texas | |
| For more information on the trials of the FLDS men from the YFZ Ranch in Eldorado, Texas, visit our web page
Texas Hold'em | |
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| For more information email: | |
| "Religion" is no excuse for committing child abuse | |
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