Do you guys think Warren Jeffs deserves life in prison?

[Rick Lee]

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20070925/D8RSO0P82.html

I sure do. But he's just been tried and convicted for the LEAST of his crimes.

[Jeff Higgins]

I think he deserves life with all of his mothers-in-law.

[Rick Lee]

That would be good too, if he didn't wield absolute power over them all.

[gassy]

pig.

[pwd72s]

Put him in a cell with O.J.

[sammyg2]

Does he deserve it? Not up to me but if it means he never screws up any more livesjust for his own personal benefit in the name of a religion, I'm all for it. I've always considered these extremist fringe zealots as a danger. Most are just too "out there" to be considered safe and sane. they tell people what they want to hear and get them hooked, then completely take control of them so they have no choices anymore. when that happens the people become slaves and are at the mercy of the so called "profit". Lots of examples, no need to name them here cough ... David Koresh..... oops.

Based solely on what I have heard and read about this guy, he's a very sick man. I doubt he will admit the error of his ways, i doubt he will repent, I doubt he will regret his actions, he's probably so messed up that he is a lost cause on this planet.
He still has a chance in the next life, if he gets his act together (which I don't expect he will).

[Rick Lee]

I don't think Jeffs's little fiefdom attracts any newbies looking for a new religion. It's a factory for producing women who know nothing about the outside world and their rights, so they can be married off to older men as rewards for their loyalty to Jeffs. Colorado City is the welfare fraud capital of the US because of all the kids whose moms are not recognized by the state as married and who thus get welfare as "single" moms. This despite the fact that the FDLS Church has a billion dollars to their name. Their own police enforce a Taliban-like moral code; no tv, no video games, no unsanctioned music, no dancing. Jeffs exiles teenage boy offenders because they compete with the older men for wives. These exiled boys have become a subculture in surrounding areas like Hurricane and St. George, UT, living in squalor, addicted to drugs, stealing to live. This is the stuff the state turns a blind eye toward, despite plenty of evidence. Jeffs is a monster and his little fiefdom needs to be broken up, if not by AZ authorities, then by the feds.

[MRM]

Yes. Rick is 100% right. Jeffs is a monster.

[Mo_Gearhead]

QUOTE: "Under Utah law, a 14-year-old can consent to sex in some circumstances."
____________________

Curious? Similar laws in other states?

Perhaps he can sign with HBO later? BIG LOVE II.

Anyone else find the timing/release of that series to be curious, given the current Presidential candidate.....?

[Rick Lee]

No, I think Big Love was hatched after Jon Krakauer's book "Under the Banner of Heaven" came out about 5-6 yrs. ago, well before Romney was thought to be a pres. candidate. HBO did considerable research before launching that show. For those who watch it, Juniper Creek is Colorado City, Roman Grant is Rulon Jeffs (Warren's father) and Alby is Warren Jeffs. Obviously, it's loosely based, as Colorado City, AZ is a good 400 miles south of Sandy, UT and the tv show makes it look like Juniper Creek is just around the corner from Bill's house.

I'm a little curious as to how Jeffs is being charged with violating UT law, when Colo. City is in AZ. He has committed so many federal crimes, not to mention fleeing the FBI, that I don't know why the feds don't just hammer him.

[CRH911S]

I'm more concerned with government regulations restricting the practices within an established religion. Jeff's gets convicted but where are the parents and why aren't they being held accountable?

[Rick Lee]

So, do you think anything should be allowed, as long as it's covered by one's religion? Statuatory rape? Forced marriage? Forced exile? Welfare fraud? The kids' parents are powerless against Jeffs. He controls every aspect of their lives - he owns the land their houses are on, can have them fired from their jobs, can make his police harass them, etc. No one, including the state authorities have ever stood up to him or his dad.

[CRH911S]

Rick, Jefferson pondered over the question of government regulation/intrusion into religious practices. Clearly, the Constitution allows everything under the sun except human sacrifices. I'm not an expert on this particular religion but what I do know is that Jeffs isn't the first Prophet so why are we getting upset now? Christians for centuries have taken and continue to take wives as young as 13 or at the onset of puberty. Christian parents have for centuries arranged marriages and still do. The federal/state government subsidizes child birth and created welfare. So it's okay to have children you can't afford.
So which religious appeal should our government use in the creation and enforcement of laws?

[Rick Lee]

Originally Posted by CRH911S

Rick, Jefferson pondered over the question of government regulation/intrusion into religious practices. Clearly, the Constitution allows everything under the sun except human sacrifices. I'm not an expert on this particular religion but what I do know is that Jeffs isn't the first Prophet so why are we getting upset now? Christians for centuries have taken and continue to take wives as young as 13 or at the onset of puberty. Christian parents have for centuries arranged marriages and still do. The federal/state government subsidizes child birth and created welfare. So it's okay to have children you can't afford.
So which religious appeal should our government use in the creation and enforcement of laws?

I don't think the gov't. should pay for anyone's kids, but that has nothing to do with religion. Polygamy is a federal crime, whether you think it's a matter of religion or not. And that crime, writ large, has produced thousands of welfare babies, not to mention the extremely high incidence of birth defects there. Using state-chartered police forces to enforce religious morals, which are not law anywhere in the US, I'd say, warrants some attention from the feds.

[bigchillcar]

+1

[Rick Lee]

If any of you guys are going to be in Vegas, take a day and drive out to Colorado City. Read Krakauer's book. When you get to Colo. City, you will wonder how in the world such a place exists in this country. I can't describe how eery that place was, seeing trucks full of kids, women in Little House on the Prairie outfits, no businesses, no restaurants, nothing, but ramshackle houses with no siding on them and all the curtains drawn, Jeffs's huge, walled compound, no one walking around. It's right out of a sci-fi. flick. I took a four-mile dirt road to get there from the UT state line.