Polygamist Reality TV Stars Fight for the Right Not to Be Married
Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs has been sentenced to life in prison for sexually abusing underage child brides. The leader of the Utah-based Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints received the maximum sentence for both counts after the jury deliberated for under 30 minutes. Jeffs's unsettling history of abuse is well-documented, landing him on the FBI's Most Wanted list. "During the trial, prosecutors used DNA evidence to show Jeffs fathered a child with a 15-year-old and played an audio recording of what they said was him sexually assaulting a 12-year-old," reports the Associated Press. "Jeffs is the eighth FLDS man convicted since a raid of a ranch run by the church, which believes polygamy brings exaltation in heaven." Jeffs represented himself during his trial and reportedly remained silent while his sentence was read.
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