Polygamy Sect Leader Guilty Of Sex Charges

Warren Jeffs Convicted Of Being Accomplice To Rape For Marrying Man And 14-Year-Old Girl

(AP)  The leader of a polygamous Mormon splinter group was convicted Tuesday of being an accomplice to rape for forcing a 14-year-old girl to marry her 19-year-old cousin.

Warren Jeffs, 51, could get life in prison after a trial that threw a spotlight on a renegade community along the Arizona-Utah line where as many as 10,000 of Jeffs' followers practice plural marriage and revere him as a mighty prophet with dominion over their salvation.

Jeffs stood and, like his 15 followers in the courtroom, wore a stoic look as the verdict was read.

Prosecutors said Jeffs, who performed the ceremony, forced the girl into marriage and sex against her will. Jurors said they agreed Jeffs rejected the girl's pleas and refused to release her from the marriage.

"He was pretty much her only ticket out of the relationship," said juror Jerry Munk, 36.

Defense attorney Wally Bugden, who told jurors that Jeffs was a victim of religious persecution, declined to comment.

The jury deliberated about 16 hours over three days. On Tuesday morning, the judge replaced a juror with an alternate for undisclosed reasons.

While polygamy itself was not on trial — the couple were monogamous — the case focused attention on the practice of polygamy in Utah, where it has generally been tolerated in the half-century since a government raid in 1953 proved a public relations disaster, with children photographed being torn from their mothers' arms.

Jeffs succeeded his father in 2002 as president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Former members say he rules with an iron fist, demanding perfect obedience from followers and exercising the right to arrange marriages as well as break them up and assign new spouses.

"This trial has not been about religion or vendetta. It was simply about child abuse and preventing abuse," the victim, now 21, said in prepared remarks after the verdict.

"The easy thing would have been to do nothing, but I have followed my heart and spoken the truth," she said, declining to take questions from reporters.

The Associated Press generally does not name those who allege sexual abuse.

At the trial, widely different versions of the relationship — and Jeffs' influence — were presented by the woman and her former husband, Allen Steed, 26.

At their wedding in 2001 at a Nevada motel, the woman said, she cried in despair when pressed by Jeffs to say "I do" and had to be coaxed to kiss her new husband. The woman testified that FLDS girls receive no information about their bodies or reproduction. She said she didn't even know sex was the means by which women had babies.

The woman said the couple were married for at least a month before they had intercourse, her husband telling her it was "time for you to be a wife and do your duty."

"My entire body was shaking. I was so scared," she testified. "He just laid me on the bed and had sex."

Afterward, she slipped into the bathroom, where she downed two bottles of over-the-counter pain reliever and curled up on the floor, she said. "The only thing I wanted to do was die," she said.

But Steed testified that his teenage bride initiated their first sexual encounter, approaching him after he fell asleep in his clothes after a 12-hour day at work.

Under Utah law, a 14-year-old can consent to sex in some circumstances. But sex is not considered consensual if a person under 18 is enticed by someone at least three years older.

For reasons prosecutors have never explained, Steed has not been charged with a crime.

The mainstream Mormon Church, or the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, renounced polygamy more than a century ago, excommunicates members who engage in the practice, and disavows any connection to the FLDS church.

Jeffs is also charged in Arizona with being an accomplice to both incest and sexual misconduct with a minor for arranging marriages between two underage girls and relatives of theirs. In addition, Jeffs is under federal indictment in Utah on charges of fleeing to avoid prosecution.

The charismatic Jeffs was captured in a traffic stop last year just outside Las Vegas after about 18 months on the run. At the time, he was on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted list, alongside such figures as Osama bin Laden.

Jeffs was in a red Cadillac Escalade in which investigators found more than $57,000, cell phones, prepaid credit cards, wigs and sunglasses.

"Everyone should now know that no one is above the law, religion is not an excuse for abuse and every victim has a right to be heard," said Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff, who had endorsed the prosecution in Washington County.

Since at least the 1920s, members of the FLDS have lived in the twin towns of Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah, where the women wear long prairie dresses and have long braided hair, and the men dress modestly too, often in buttoned-up shirts.

All homes and other property were kept in a trust controlled by Jeffs and other church leaders until a judge in 2005 put an accountant in charge because of allegations of mismanagement.

[mudrose-2009]

No one said Bush was being blamed for anything mudrose! Read the *** paragraph if you are capable. He just said George Bush had all the sociopath trait''''s! And he does. You people whined and belly-ached like babies all the time Clinton was in office. He couldn''''t do a thing you right wingers didn''''t complain about. Now you can''''t take any of the medicine you doled out for years. Grow up!
Posted by grumpas

And Clintoid still can''t. While his ole lady is making the Presidential circuit, the philanderer is making the party circuit. I''d say Bill the Clintoid has more in common with Jeffs. The only difference is that Jeffs is the leader of a polygamous Mormon splinter group. Clintoid is a one man show.

[Krazcarl]

Mity Whity 7 pesos is just a lonely troll looking for reaction because he/she has no life. I think hes from utah seam that''s where the brain dead congregate never gets outside the trailer but did enjoy your post and agree lived in GA. 25 years great place great people those that put down the south never spent time here know a lot of yankees {like myself} came for a visit and ended up staying.

[grumpas]

No one said Bush was being blamed for anything mudrose! Read the *** paragraph if you are capable. He just said George Bush had all the sociopath trait''s! And he does. You people whined and belly-ached like babies all the time Clinton was in office. He couldn''t do a thing you right wingers didn''t complain about. Now you can''t take any of the medicine you doled out for years. Grow up!

[dragonmouse-2009]

Sorry...I think the girls parents are equally guilty. They threw their daughter to the wolves.

[mudrose-2009]

You all want to learn something, go to google, type in sociopathic personality, you''''''''ll see Jeffs displays all the characteristics. People in power often do; and when you''''''''re honest with yourself, you''''''''ll see George W Bush displays the same.


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Posted by californiar

I knew it wouldnt be long before this was somehow Bush''''s fault too...lmao

Posted by didntinhale

He''s the fall guy for every woe that befalls the human race. That''s what happens when you surplant religion with secularism. Secularists need to hate God and now they have that incarnation in Bush. You have to follow the warped logic. Be very careful when you go through their mental maze - it''s frightening. It you come out alive, you are much stronger for it.

[bigsk8fan]

I stand corrected thought this manipulater would get off being in the home town in all. Posted by crzmeat

I was afraid this guy would get off too. Utah allows marriage down to 14. And in marriage you expect carnal knowledge. So what would you expect for an arranged marriage.

This Jeffs and his FLDS followers are the biggest groups of perverts. They work on the young girls who can''t defend themselves. They don''t try this with 24 year old females, just 14 year olds. They force out the teen males so that the old guys can get more young wives.

The town was controlled by the FLDS church. The police were beholden to the FLDS. Nowhere for the 14 year old girls to go.

[colonieny]

All this is bad.
How about all those young HISPANIC 14 year olds who are willingly ? having *** ? - are being "raped" by Hispanic men in their 20s in our major Cities, often with approval of parents. It is a cultural thing, and none are prosecuted. None arrested.
This is no lie. I have seen it, many times.
This is America, and not acceptable !

[michellem99-2009]

Praise The Lord And Pass The Plate
By Barbara Ann
Yer know Lord I am poor.
They pass the plate.
Dear Lord yes every Sunday.
I can''t as they don''t use it.
For yer business.
They live in fancy.
Yer brothers and sisters.
We be in our homes.
I would pass ye Lord.
A plate at my table.
To give yer a meal.
At night a place to sleep.
Yer here in the human heart.
Lord welcome to my home.
A simple place.
Yer free to slay.
Yer understand the reasons.
I don''t pander to them chruches.
Ye don''t live there.
They abuse yer holy name.
That never sat right.
With this blind hillbilly.
Thank yer Lord.
For yer blessings.

crzmeant I borrowed a line from yer post to write this verse.

[mitywhity]

seven-pesos, where do you live? I would love to kick you into a crumpled bleeding mass of wounds just like the rest of the southern posters here who you feel so superior to.

[mitywhity]

Think of the fundamentalist religious people. They have little or no education beyond their religion. The result...Errr, take out the religion from your statement abd insert atheist, whole wheat bread eater, ballroom dancer, etc. and your statement still would make as much sense. Little education and isolation create an ill-equipped person to survive. Animals always educate their young. Why shouldn''t we? What you miss here is the power of religion to dominate the ideas of a person. Take the Vatican and their bloody and repressive history for example.

[usayesterday]

There are many more "Warren Jeffs" and "David Koresh" figures out there, ready to take advantage of people... in the name of religion!

This is a lesson to those who are only familiar with and are educated in the Bible (or whatever holy book).

To be educated only in religion and not in the world, is extremely dangerous to yourself and your fellow human beings.

Think of the fundamentalist religious people. They have little or no education beyond their religion. The result...

...they run planes into buildings, they kill others who don''t agree with their fundamentalist beliefs, and worst of all, they even go to the extreme of killing themselves in hopes to kill others at the same time!

[dmhphils]

What happened to Warren Jeffs is what happens to all who put themselves under the law to live by the law, which no one can do. He thinks himself to be righteous because and obeying the law completely and therefore qualified to judge others. He is of course deceived, but then the roots of the LDS "church" have created this monster. To be honest, it is the same fanaticism that drives the Muslims; thinking they are righteous because they think they keep the law. They can''t do it either.

[mcvet]

seven-pesos, this perverse pervert is NOT a Christian.

Posted by Hermit22 at 08:54 PM : Sep 25, 2007
+ report abuse

Neither are Pat Robertson or James Dobson but they play the role and take advantage of millions of the most ignorant and simple in our society. They scare the daylights out of them day after day and if told to do so, they would probably give over children, wives and others to these leaches. We need LAWS in this nation to protect these very vunerable people from being exploited the way they were in the last election and have been for decades now. It''s a sad statement and an even more Immoral fact of our society today. Sieg Heil and Amen.

[oleander8]

Sounds like the first thing the state of Utah should do is raise the age of legal consent. Fourteen years old is a child and can be intimidated into doing anything.

[Krazcarl]

I stand corrected thought this manipulater would get off being in the home town in all. Think Roomey made a call they were hung then all of a sudden a verdict that only works if theres 1 maybe 2 undecided they were split he''s still not in jail and no sentance and appeals. I don''t trust these slippery snakes. Praise the lord pass the plate and give up your daughter. Had a mormon friend fron Utah what she told be was scarey she went back faimly and all there about as christian as a soda can but so is the elks club.

[hermit22]

seven-pesos, this perverse pervert is NOT a Christian.

[seven-pesos]

hey, christians!

not enough folks that believe like you do?

well, get yourself cloned!

god no longer has a monopoly on life.

ha,ha,ha

confused?...maybe it''s better that you just off yourself.

need a strategy?...just jump off the roof.

ha,ha,ha.

nothing good comes out of the south!

[name_verify]

Liberal = Queer, Incest, Plural, Pedo, Beastie

[seven-pesos]

christians are like cockroaches!

whenever you shine the light on them they run into their holes.

that''s why i always wear my $300 dollar, lizard skin, 2" heel, chrome tipped

pointed texas cowboy boots...

so i can step on those cockroaches when they run into the corner.

ha,ha,ha.

war, hate, phony republican christian snakes...

nothing good comes out of the bush loving south.

[kansas1946]

Good riddence to this creep. I hope they lock him up and throw away the key. It is deplorable when these sick pukes claim power from God and use it to demean and control gullible and innocent people to feed their needs. He is just as dangerous to other people as a homicidal maniac with a gun.