| Jeffs ordered to stand trial FLDS leader pleads not guilty to rape as accomplice charge | |||
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By Ben Winslow Deseret Morning News | |||
ST. GEORGE — As a judge ordered Fundamentalist LDS Church leader Warren Jeffs to stand trial, some of his followers wiped away tears. They came to the 5th District Courthouse to see the man they call a "prophet." In a display of respect, they stood every time Jeffs entered or exited the courtroom. There were 16 in all — including five women wearing the prairie dresses common to the polygamous border towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz. Several times during Thursday's lengthy preliminary hearing, Jeffs would turn and smile, nodding his head in acknowledgement. They smiled back. In the FLDS stronghold of Hildale and Colorado City, members were fasting and praying for Jeffs' release, a former follower told the Deseret Morning News. Instead, after more than six hours of testimony and legal arguments, the judge bound Jeffs over for trial on two charges of rape as an accomplice, a first-degree felony. He is accused of forcing a 14-year-old girl to marry an older cousin in 2001. "For these two offenses, how do you plead?" Judge James L. Shumate asked. "Not guilty," Jeffs, 51, replied softly. Outside court, Jeffs' defense attorney Wally Bugden told reporters the FLDS leader is "at peace" with the judge's decision. "We believe in the jury system and we believe that Mr. Jeffs will be acquitted," he said. Jeffs is scheduled to go on trial for two weeks beginning April 23. Washington County prosecutors said they will be ready. Their star witness, a woman they call "Jane Doe IV," remains willing to testify. "I don't think it would be easy for anyone to discuss the private details of her life while confronting a man she was raised to believe was the mouthpiece of God," Washington County Attorney Brock Belnap said Thursday. "She is thankful that this stage of the case is over and is prepared to move forward to trial." The woman — who is now 20 and has remarried — gave birth last week to a girl. She did not attend Thursday's hearing, but her lawyer said she is "pleased and relieved" that Jeffs was bound over for trial. "We agree with the judge that Warren Jeffs should be tried before a jury on whether commanding a 14-year-old girl to marry her first cousin and instructing her to have children is against the law," lawyer Roger Hoole said. Prosecutors say Jeffs used his influence as a teacher, a school principal and an FLDS leader to push the 14-year-old into a marriage with her 19-year-old cousin. Jeffs even presided over the quick wedding ceremony at a motel in Caliente, Nev. "He made her believe her salvation was at stake and it was God's will that she do this," deputy Washington County Attorney Ryan Shaum told the judge. "Jane Doe IV" objected to the union, and she testified in November that before and after the ceremony Jeffs urged her to give herself "mind, body and soul" to her husband. Jeffs' defense team contends that the FLDS leader merely offered counseling to a troubled young couple like any spiritual leader would. "Officiating at a wedding does not put Mr. Jeffs on notice that unconsented sex is or was going to be happening," Bugden said, adding that many other religions — and even the Bible — talk about women submitting to their husbands. Outside of court, Bugden suggested the charges leveled against Jeffs could be used on others. "Does a Mormon bishop become an accomplice to rape when he suggests that a couple think about having children?" he said. Bugden also claims the woman never explicitly told anyone that she was being raped and never used the word "sex" when she was questioned by police. To back up that claim, he called a Washington County Sheriff's deputy to the witness stand on Thursday. "The most specific she ever got was her husband did some things and touched her in places that made her uncomfortable," Bugden said. "That's correct," Washington County Sheriff's Sgt. Shauna Jones replied. Prosecutors countered that "sex" is not a culturally permitted term within the closed FLDS society. The judge agreed. "The admonition of multiply and replenish the Earth — absent medical intervention — that implies sexual intercourse," Shumate said in his ruling. As Jeffs' followers left the courthouse wiping away tears, ex-members said they were pleased he will face trial. Some worried about the damage done by Jeffs' high-priced defense team. "I'm concerned," said "Aunt" Jenny Larson, an ex-member who shelters teens leaving the polygamous communities. "Money talks in Utah, and I don't think Warren's going to get too much punishment." Outside the courthouse Thursday morning, a tiny group of protesters waved pink banners as the sun came up on the red rock hills. "We hope to make some kind of statement that says we do not condone violence towards women and children," said Lanelle McCollum with the women's rights group Code Pink. The St. George Police Department blocked off roads around the courthouse, and SWAT sharpshooters could be seen on the cliffs surrounding the courthouse. Across the border in Mohave County, Ariz., Jeffs is facing charges of sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy to commit sexual conduct with a minor. During court proceedings Thursday, Jeffs signed an agreement waiving extradition to Arizona to face the charges. However, the judge said Mohave County prosecutors have elected to wait until the Utah case against Jeffs is finished before proceeding. "It's one hurdle over, many more to go," Mohave County Attorney's investigator Gary Engels said. "It's going to be hard fought all the way." Engels confirmed to the Deseret Morning News he is conducting more investigations into Jeffs. The Utah Attorney General's Office has also been investigating Jeffs and the FLDS Church. The Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council recently launched an investigation into the police in Hildale and Colorado City over allegations the town marshals disobeyed court orders and remain loyal to Jeffs. The FLDS leader remains jailed in the Purgatory Correctional Facility without bail. Defense lawyers agreed on Thursday to keep him there until they deal with issues of discovery in the case. Should Jeffs ever be granted bail, the FBI filed papers in federal court stating they will take him into custody immediately. E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com | |||
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deseretnews.com Originally published Friday, December 15, 2006 | |||
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