FLDS leader Warren Jeffs has been convicted and sentenced to life in prison for the sexual assault of 12 and 15 year-old girls who were “spiritually married” to him. The trial, held in San Angelo, Texas, was short but disturbing, with audiotapes and photographs of Jeffs’ crimes presented to the jury. During the trial, Jeffs fired his defense team, and defended himself with rambling missives and an affidavit he claimed came from God. Often, he just sat in silence.
The jury verdict came quickly after hearing particularly sordid testimony, including the testimony of Brent Jeffs, Warren Jeffs’ nephew, who was raped by him at the age of five. Jeffs told Brent “it was God’s will” that he sodomize him. The jury also heard tape recordings of Jeffs instructing young girls in group sex and other sexual acts. Much of this material was found at the Yearning for Zion Ranch, which was raided back in 2008 in West Texas. Although many of the children were placed in foster care after the raid, many are back living at the ranch with their mothers, as an internal struggle for the leadership of the FLDS ensues.
Jeffs’ hold over the FLDS community can not be overstated. Even on the run, Jeffs communicated with followers, and many, like former follower Flora Jessop, believed he continued to attempt to send messages to his followers. His practice of marrying increasingly younger women, even girls, shows that he was a pedophile with an absolute hold over his community. Jeffs dictated what people could do down to the smallest detail, even banning the color red within the FLDS community.
The case is a reminder why it is important to lift the statute of limitations regarding sexual crimes against children. In a close-knit conservative religious community like FLDS, children who are subjected to this kind of control have no say in their lives, because their parents are part of the same system as well. Many times, they cannot come to grips with what has happened to them until they reach adulthood. Jeffs’ nephew had no recourse against Jeffs because the statute of limitations for the crime his uncle perpetrated had run in Utah. The only thing he could do was to take the stand in the Texas trial.
For groups like the FLDS, the Catholic Church, and other religious groups that have had repeated cases of pedophilia and sexual assaults against children, the statute of limitations should be lifted so that cases can be tried, and a jury can adjudicate the sexual, mental, emotional, and physical abuse of children who cannot leave these religious communities without a parent’s consent. The fight to have this happen in states like Pennsylvania and others continues. Until then, many children will continue to suffer and struggle into adulthood as those who use God as an excuse for their perversions continue to go unpunished.
