Hildale, Utah – For about a century, members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints have been located in Hildale and in adjoining Colorado City, Ariz. – living in isolation to practice their religion without interference.
However, the arrest of the sect’s self-proclaimed prophet, Warren Jeffs, has increased outside attention on the group and its practice of polygamy, which sometimes includes marrying teenage girls to men 20 years or more their senior.
Jeffs, 50, a fugitive wanted on criminal charges in both Utah and Arizona for more than a year, was arrested outside Las Vegas on Monday during a traffic stop. He waived extradition to Utah to face two counts of first-degree felony rape as an accomplice, accused of arranging a marriage that led to the rape of an underage girl.
If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life in prison.
Polygamy was a tenet of the early Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints – the Mormons – but the practice was abandoned in 1890 when Utah became a state. The church now excommunicates members found practicing polygamy, and the practice is banned in both the Arizona and Utah constitutions.
However, strident believers in “the principle,” as it is known, have remained steadfast.
Members of the FLDS practice polygamy because they believe that plural marriage secures their exaltation in heaven and that the number of wives a man marries corresponds to the level of glory he’ll achieve.
Warren Jeffs assumed leadership of the church in 2002 after the death of his 98-year-old father, Rulon Jeffs, who had 65 children by several women. Warren Jeffs reportedly took nearly all his father’s widows as his own wives. He is said to have about 40 wives and nearly 60 children.
