![]() ![]() Jane was also a witness when Winston married another young American woman. When told that she was, Jane said that Jeffs told the witnesses present, “The Lord has just inspired me that she also should be married to Winston.”Īnd, a few minutes later, the sister was. Article contentīut after the ceremony, FLDS prophet Rulon Jeffs asked whether her sister was with her. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. One young woman had come to Canada with her sister from the “mother community” of Short Creek on the Utah-Arizona border knowing that she was to marry Winston. She testified that she was present for three of Blackmore’s marriages including the day that he married two sisters. I’m sorry I believe in a God that wouldn’t ask you to do something that was impossibleĪs a plural wife, sister-wife and midwife, Jane has a unique perspective on the fundamentalist Mormon community known as Bountiful, which she left in 2003. James Oler, 53, who is also being tried on one count of polygamy, has had five wives. Winston Blackmore, 60, is alleged to now have had 24 wives and he’s said to have 145 children. “But he was unhappy with my confrontation.” “I thought that was not a bad idea,” Jane said tartly during her testimony. Winston insisted that he would lose his position as bishop if he didn’t accept all the wives being assigned to him by the prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. When her husband told her he was doing God’s work, Jane said she replied: “I’m sorry I believe in a God that wouldn’t ask you to do something that was impossible.” THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh Activate your Online Access Now Article content If you are a Home delivery print subscriber, unlimited online access is included in your subscription. Manage Print Subscription / Tax Receipt.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The newcomers dubbed the pristine spot at the base of a snowy mountain range Bountiful.Ĭopyright 2009 Associated Press. In 1947, a small group moved just across the border into Lister, British Columbia. The FLDS, with an estimated 10,000 members, is headquartered in Colorado City, Ariz., and Hildale, Utah. The children were returned to their parents in June after the Texas Supreme Court ruled the state overstepped in removing all the children when it only had evidence of abuse or neglect involving about a half-dozen teenage girls. ![]() In April, Texas authorities raided an FLDS ranch and put more than 400 children into foster care. Jessop said the FLDS church does not condone or practice underage marriage. Oppal said some legal experts believe polygamy charges won't withstand a constitutional challenge in Canada over the issue of freedom of religion.įLDS spokesman Willie Jessop said Oler and any other FLDS member who might be charged would face their accusers In June, Oppal appointed a special prosecutor to look into allegations of criminal abuse at Bountiful despite two earlier legal opinions that said it would be difficult to proceed with criminal charges for polygamy itself.īlackmore openly acknowledges having numerous wives and dozens of children but has said his community abhors sexual abuse of children. Mormons renounced polygamy in 1890 as a condition of Utah's statehood. Even though many of the town's residents are related or have same last name, followers of the two leaders are splintered and are not allowed to talk with each other.įLDS members practice polygamy in arranged marriages, a tradition tied to the early theology of the Mormon church. Oler is the bishop of Bountiful's FLDS community loyal to Jeffs. He once ran the Canadian arm of the Utah-based Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but was ejected in 2003 by that group's leader, Warren Jeffs. The problem has always been the defense of religion has always been raised."īlackmore, long known as "the Bishop of Bountiful," runs an independent sect of about 400 members in the town of Bountiful. "It's been with us for well over 20 years. "This has been a very complex issue," he said. Oppal, who said the charges carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison, said the case will be the first test of Canada's polygamy laws. VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - Two top leaders of a polygamous community in western Canada have been arrested and charged with practicing polygamy, British Columbia's attorney general said yesterday.Īttorney General Wally Oppal said Winston Blackmore is charged with marrying 20 women, while James Oler is accused of marrying two women. ![]()
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