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Colorado City is a town in Mohave County, Arizona, United States, and is located in a region known as the Arizona Strip. As of the 2020 census, the population of the town was 2,478, down from 4,821 in 2010. At least three Mormon fundamentalist sects are said to have been based there. A majority of residents and many local officials belong to the most prominent of these sects, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, whose corporation also owned much of the land within and around the town until state intervention in the 2000s.
Hildale is a city in Washington County, Utah, United States. The population was 1,127 at the 2020 census.
The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is a religious sect of the fundamentalist Mormon denominations whose members practice polygamy. It is estimated that 6,000 to 10,000 members reside in Hildale, Utah; Rocky Ridge, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona (raided); Eldorado, Texas (raided); Westcliffe, Colorado; Mancos, Colorado; Creston and Bountiful, British Columbia (sold); and Pringle, South Dakota (sold).
Mormon fundamentalism is a belief in the validity of selected fundamental aspects of Mormonism as taught and practiced in the nineteenth century, particularly during the administrations of Joseph Smith, Brigham Young, and John Taylor, the first three presidents of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Mormon fundamentalists seek to uphold tenets and practices no longer held by mainstream Mormons. The principle most often associated with Mormon fundamentalism is plural marriage, a form of polygyny first taught in the Latter Day Saint movement by the movement's founder, Smith. A second and closely associated principle is that of the United Order, a form of egalitarian communalism. Mormon fundamentalists believe that these and other principles were wrongly abandoned or changed by the LDS Church in its efforts to become reconciled with mainstream American society. Today, the LDS Church excommunicates any of its members who practice plural marriage or who otherwise closely associate themselves with Mormon fundamentalist practices.
Warren Steed Jeffs is an American cult religious leader who has been convicted of several sex crimes and two assisted sex crimes involving children. He is the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a polygamous movement which has no affiliation with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. In 2011, he was convicted of two felony counts of child sexual assault, for which he is serving a life sentence.
Rulon Timpson Jeffs, known to followers as Uncle Rulon, was an American polygamist and religious leader who served as the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, a Mormon fundamentalist organization based in Colorado City, Arizona, United States from 1986 until his death in 2002. He was the father of later FLDS Church leader and convicted felon Warren Jeffs.
"Lost boys" is a term used for young men who have been excommunicated or pressured to leave polygamous Mormon fundamentalist groups, such as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS). Although sometimes officially accused of apostasy or disobedience, it is thought that they are mainly pressured to leave by older adult men to reduce competition for wives within such sects, usually when they are between the ages of 13 and 21.
The Yearning for Zion Ranch, or the YFZ Ranch, was a 1,700-acre (690-hectare) Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) community of as many as 700 people, located near Eldorado in Schleicher County, Texas, United States. In April 2014, the State of Texas took physical and legal possession of the property.
Banking on Heaven is a documentary film which exposes the largest polygamous enclave in the United States and its leader, Warren Jeffs. Banking on Heaven was directed by Dot Reidelbach and written, produced, and narrated by Laurie Allen, who escaped a similar polygamous sect at age sixteen.
Colorado City Unified School District No. 14 is a school district headquartered in Colorado City, Arizona, serving students in the towns of Colorado City, Centennial Park and part of Cane Beds in rural Mohave County, and in Hildale, Utah. It operates Cottonwood Preschool, Cottonwood Elementary School, and El Capitan High School.
Leroy Sunderland Johnson, known as Uncle Roy, was a leader of the Mormon fundamentalist group in Short Creek, which later evolved into the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, from the mid-1950s until his death.
The Short Creek raid was an Arizona Department of Public Safety and Arizona National Guard action against Mormon fundamentalists that took place on the morning of July 26, 1953, at Short Creek, Arizona. The Short Creek raid was the largest mass arrest of polygamists in American history. At the time, it was described as "the largest mass arrest of men and women in modern American history."
Merril Jessop was a high-ranking bishop in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, commonly referred to as the FLDS Church. He was briefly the de facto leader of the FLDS. Jessop was also in charge of the YFZ Ranch during the 2008 raid.
The term placement marriage refers to arranged marriages between members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. Placement marriage is believed and practiced by members of the FLDS Church to show their commitment and obedience in order to obtain salvation for themselves and their parents; it might be considered “the most visible outward symbol of members’ devotion."
Wendell Loy Nielsen was the president of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, replacing Warren Jeffs, at that time imprisoned on charges related to sexual assaults against minors.
Sons of Perdition is a 2010 documentary film featuring a behind-the-scenes look into the lives of teenagers exiled from their families and community by Warren Jeffs, self-proclaimed prophet of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. Sons of Perdition premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City on April 24, 2010, having sold out at the box office within one hour from the time tickets went on sale.
Lyle Jeffs is the brother of Warren Jeffs and a bishop in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, commonly referred to as the FLDS Church. He has been referred to as his brother's "special counselor" in some church documents.
Ruby Jessop is an American former member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) and child bride known for her family connections, her 2013 escape from an FLDS-controlled polygamous community, and the criminal probe prompted by her escape.
Seth Jeffs is an American high-ranking official in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He is known for harboring his brother Warren Jeffs during the federal manhunt to arrest him.
Rachel Jeffs Blackmore is an American author and former member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. She is the daughter of the church's prophet, convicted pedophile Warren Jeffs.
References
- ↑ "Police Department". Town of Colorado City. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ "Colorado City says police ties to polygamous group are past". AP News. 2021-08-22. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ Shortell, David (2017-04-19). "FLDS community is ordered to reform police department". CNN. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ Hendley, Matthew. "Bill to Get Rid of FLDS-Lovin' Cops in Colorado City Gets Neutered, Passes House". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ "The turncoat: 'Thug Willie' spills secrets of FLDS and its 'prophet'". fox61.com. February 27, 2016. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ "Colorado City says police ties to polygamous group are past". The Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ "Once under Justice Department scrutiny, Hildale's police force is now being honored for reforms". FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU). 2023-04-27. Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ "From shadows into the light, Colorado City's policing transition into award-winning department" . Retrieved 2023-12-13.
- ↑ Woods, Alden Woods and Alden. "Outsiders, FLDS battle for control of towns Warren Jeffs left behind". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 2023-12-13.