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.

[jscribe58]

It''s a tough thing, because this is people''s religion, but like it or nor not, a minor girl is still a minor and has the right to not get married, or to not have *** forced on her at any age. What these people need to learn mostly is that they are not above the law.

[marcodele]

Does this mean ''Big Love'' on HBO will be canceled?

[sgtrds]

He deserves every year in prison he gets and more because this involved minors. That said I still don''t think that the government has any right in banning plural marriage among adults. It''s none of the governments dam*n business if someone wants three wives or four husbands and any combination thereof. You only live life once and as long as you''re not hurting anyone and are all adults, you should be able to live it as you please and with as many other people as you please.

[roger_inkart]

Who is ''bleeding the beast'' now you POS?

[twylacrat]

He''s nothing but a pimp! What would YOU call it?

[kyrockbkgold]

The judge shuffled the jury after they reported that they couldn''t agree. This is not how our justice system is supposed to work. I don''t care if the guy is a mass-murderer: he is guaranteed a fair trial by the U.S. Constitution.

[vastr-wcon]

.
Wow. A polygamist is convicted in Utah! Way to go. Now, is only a cold-blooded murderer could be convicted in LA, one could again have some confidence in the judicial system.

.

[kyrockbkgold]

Obviously, the girl and her parents consented to the marriage. Where is there any violation of the law. All across America, underage girls get married. It happened with one of my nieces. She and her husband have four children and live a upper-middle-class lifestyle after more than 14 years together. Underage girls are permitted by Utah law to have mutual, unmarried *** with someone within three years of their age.

But the worse thing of all was the judge replacing the lone jury member who did not agree with the rest of the jury. This is un-American. The whole trial should be thrown out and re-tried.

[name_verify]

This is all the Libs fault. If Libs advocate same gender marriage, then that sets the legal precedent for the other pervs.

[kyrockbkgold]

*** happens between teenagers. So why shouldn''t underage girls be allowed to marry. In another state, this case would not have gone to trial because the two persons were within 5 years of each other''s age. This whole case is about attacking a fringe religious group. The government did it in 1953 and they''re doing it again. This is a trial run for when the government is ready to take on mainstream religions.

[cs4466]

What? It''s the libs fault because of same *** marriage? Hmmm... Now... let''s ask an easy question... Is Warren Jeffs a conservative or a liberal? Is he a Republican or Democrat? This is, of course, only one obvious answer: Warren Jeffs is a big fat bigot Republican. He is everything "conservatism" stands for - bigotry, oppression against gay people, women, and an advocate of Church over State.

So whose fault is it again? Lol... idiots.

[coffee_guy1]

Just goes to show ya that all ya gotta do is stick up a fence, and the nosey media self righteous brigade lets the accusations roll off its tongue like saliva.

[kyrockbkgold]

There is a case where teenagers got together in a motel room and had an orgy. They videotaped it. One of them was sent to jail and then the conviction was overturned. The video is considered child porn. That fact alone should have kept the guy in jail and sent the rest of them to jail also.

[kyrockbkgold]

Lol... idiots.

Posted by cs4466

----------

Good manners dictate that everyone has a right to their opinion no matter how off the bat it might be. Far be it from me to violate good manners.

[mo005]

SgtRDS said: It''''s none of the governments dam*n business if someone wants three wives or four husbands and any combination thereof. You only live life once and as long as you''''re not hurting anyone and are all CENSENTING adults, you should be able to live it as you please and with as many other people as you please. I agree with this, just wanted to add consenting to it. I just don''t think I could handle three wives myself, one is two many sometimes.

[hypnotoad72]

''S#x charges?'' Next time, use cash.

But in earnest seriousness, lock that creep (when convicted) up for life or until male menopause kicks in. Sick sick sick.

[name_verify]

Are there any pics on the net?

[dogsoul]

I dunno... sure, I can see where a 14 year old girl shouldn''t be getting married OR having ***... And granted, the guy was 19 & they''re saying if he were 17 it''d be legal so long as she consented etc... I guess what''s throwing me is the fact that she''s now 21 & he''s 26... and besides her testimony, do they really HAVE much more evidence to go on? And a life sentence for arranging it? I dunno... something seems off here

[michellem99-2009]

Good. I am so happy they got another preditor off the streets. You don''t KNOW the mind of a sexual preditor. I was abused in fosror homes. The persons who ABUSED me are dead. . Any time they get bas*tards like him off the streets I thank them for doing so. No child asks for this. No helpness person . He is right where he need to be. That is not freedom of religion. Far from it.

[dogsoul]

"He is everything "conservatism" stands for - bigotry, oppression against gay people, women, and an advocate of Church over State."

As opposed to what liberalism stands for, - promoting victim culture & dependency, goal of creating a socialist state, scourge of political correctness, destruction of family values, and constant assault on Christianity...

[name_verify]

This is all the Libs fault. Advocating same gender marriage establishes a legal precedent for other perv behaviours.

[dmorg4]

its really amazing jurys will convict you on the weakest evidence now and this one certainly is pushing the law a little far i think and if they get him why dont they go after the one she married i think its a little unfair that the one who supposidly did the raping is going free!

[myidoncbs]

The truly scary part of this story is the claim that he has 10,000 followers, who "practice plural marriage and revere him as a prophet with dominion over their salvation"!

That''s 10,000 more people who should be locked up along with this prevert. I don''t think blackwater has built anything that big yet.

And his group is only ONE of several so-called "renegade" sects of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (LDS Church, aka "the mormons", Mitt Romney''s people).

[name_verify]

If a person tries to leave the Mormon faith, they risk being cut off from their family forever.

Does that legally qualify as coercion if the person is a minor who is still dependent on their family?

[dan9111]

Kinda sad really. I don''t know how viable polygamy is, but it does seem this girl got a horrible deal.

Personally I can''t see how this is worse than forcing a young man at gunpoint to pay alimony, and how feminists are accomplices. Apparently morals go down the toilet whenever you are (1) a polygamy leader, or (2) involved in campus women''s studies. There should be some place to donate to the victims of all these crimes.

[coffee_guy1]

its called x-communication.

[myidoncbs]

screen_ident makes this ridiculous claim: "This is all the Libs fault. Advocating same gender marriage establishes a legal precedent for other perv behaviours."

******, the Mormons started this *** way, way before there were ANY "Libs", hundreds of years before ANYONE was publicly advocating for same-gender marriages! Your argument is just as stu-pid as the claim that if we allow same-gender marriages, then we''d have to allow people to marry their pet goats. It just ain''t so!

You can''t blame everything in the world on the "Libs", especially now that we''re all living in BushWorld, the result of over 6 years of control by the repugnant party.

Someday, you repugnants are going to have to accept responsibility for the suffering you have created. The first step in the healing process will be for you to admit that you F-ed up big time by letting the delusional NEOCONS take over your party and this country. Once you''ve dispatched the cons, then you may be able to rejoin the human race.

[coffee_guy1]

Its actually opposite to what screen is saying, is my guess. Stigma is what creates perversion. If you wanna de-pervertize something, make it public.

[sftodd]

dogsoul -- I don''t attack Christianity -- I just want to know why you believe in it -- shouldn''t we require some evidence in support of a myth before we start judging others by it? Just ''cause someone said it was so a thousand years ago, doesn''t make it so. Otherwise, we''d all still be worshipping the sun. Doh!

[coffee_guy1]

Worst thing you could tell somebody is "don''t ask, don''t tell". Everybody has a right to tell.. everybody, and about everything. And anybody who says different is a pervert.

[tnt1954]

as a semi-expert on moronism, i lived across
from descendants of the prophet joseph smith
himself for many years. we''d debate for fun.
you don''t wanna press the delusional too hard
though, they will violently attack back.
prudence is the better part of valor.
they see him as another martyr for the faith
like joseph smith himself. the guy who went
around, kidnapping and raping and brainwashing
everyone''s wives. from palmyra to nauvoo, illinois.
and their great temples, and their plan for the
moron empire deseret here in southern calipornia
all the way to washington and beyond the universe
beyond the end of forever. they believe the super
savior will arrive by spaceship in neosho, missouri
any second now, and walter cronkite, a closet
moron, will announce his coming to the world.
byu. great choirs of saints, who are total
sinners. the moron tabernacle choir. people
join mostly for the welfare they give. they
are called rice bowl converts in some countries.
feed me, i convert. moroni 5:2 mosiah 5:2.
the book of moron is fun reading in a way.
where are the golden plates? taken to heaven.
i hate making fun of other religions, but sometimes
its very necessary, when they get power mad,
and drunk with blood of those who dare oppose
their big super schemes. it takes tact. and more
than just fact. the morons across from me were
super intelligent scientific engineers. north
american rockwell super geniuses.

[getloud1]

RESTORE OUR LIBERTY, FREEDOMS & AMERICA! DESTROY CORRUPT POLITICANS & CORPORATIONS GET ACTIVE IN YOUR CITY TODAY, TAKE ACTION! JOIN THE REVOLUTION: http://ronpaul.meetup.com/cities/ He Will Eliminate the IRS! And Stop The War In Iraq Immediatley! Restore And Protect America From Illegal Immigration! http://www.ronpaul2008.com/issues He''s America''s Last Hope!

[name_verify]

Ex-communication means a Christian cant receive communion. That''s different from shunning in the Mormon faith when ones very own family refuses to acknowledge you even exist. Imagine threatening a 14 year old with that when she is still dependendent on her family. If that isnt coercion then what is?

[name_verify]

This is all the Libs fault. They are trying to set up queer churches too. Make it legal for one kind of perv, and then a legal precedent is established, and you have to tolerate the other perv lifestyles too.

[name_verify]

Lib = queer, pedo, beastie, plural

[name_verify]

Theres a vid of Marsha Brady making out with Jan Brady on YouTube, and the Libs say its OK.

[name_verify]

Hillarys campaign took money from NAMBLA.

[michellem99-2009]

If a family member leaves mormonism yer right they want nothing to do that person. It is sad but that is the way they are treated. I would not be alive today if I did not get out..I needed a sighted person to help me..Yer read right..mormons HATE handicapped persons. They have blood on their hands. They kill in their temples. I pray that the evil mormons will be stut down..The hell is cults...They have 2 sides like Doc J and Mister Hyde. If yer don''t or can''t follow their programme then yer useless to them ..They will carry out their form of whitch hunt/ killings.I have never seen it. I have seen their craziness..I was fed up with them.

[edward1975-2009]

snidegrass: Though not Mormon, I find your information not only false, but utterly ridiculous. The teachings of the Mormon faith is nothing more than a testimonial to the fact that after Christ Crucifixion, He came to the Western world to deliver His Fathers Word. Nothing more, nothing less. And as far as this polygamy issue that was banned by the church in 1859. If your going to give information the least you should be is accurate.

[name_verify]

Liberal = Queer, Pedo, Plural, Beastie

[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.

[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.

[name_verify]

Liberal = Queer, Incest, Plural, Pedo, Beastie

[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!

[hermit22]

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

[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.

[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.

[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.

[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.

[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!