SALT LAKE CITY — The polygamous-sect leader convicted of being an accomplice to rape is asking the judge who heard the case for a new trial.
Attorneys for Warren Jeffs filed the motion Tuesday in state district court in St. George, claiming that “errors and improprieties” occurred during his four-day trial in September.
The document did not give specifics, but defense attorneys have contended that Jeffs’ prosecution was a form of religious persecution and was politically motivated by state officials who disapprove of polygamy.
A statement from Jeffs’ attorney, Wally Bugden, revealed Wednesday that Jeffs has resigned his position as president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an insular sect based in southern Utah that practices polygamy in arranged marriages.
Jeffs resigned Nov. 20, the day he was sentenced, according to the statement. It was unclear whether that means he also surrendered his authority as the faith’s prophet, and it also wasn’t clear who would take over as president. An assistant at Bugden’s office said no one would respond to reporters’ questions.
Jeffs tried to hang himself in January after telling his brother he was “not the one to be the prophet.” He later renounced the statement and has continued to pass spiritual and practical messages to church members through visitors.
A jury found Jeffs, 52, guilty of two counts of accomplice to rape for his role in the 2001 marriage of 14-year-old Elissa Wall to her 19-year-old cousin. Wall, now 21, said Jeffs used his church authority to coerce her into the marriage and sex by threatening her eternal salvation.
Jeffs was sentenced to two consecutive prison terms of five years to life and is in a state prison near Salt Lake City.
A message left seeking comment from prosecutor Brian G. Filter was not immediately returned Wednesday.
