Last month's raid on the YFZ Ranch near Eldorado, Texas, was prompted by a phone call from someone claiming to be a 16-year-old "Sarah," who said she was pregnant and in an abusive marriage to an older man. A Colorado woman is considered a "person of interest" in the calls, as authorities investigate whether they were a hoax. Texas authorities insist it doesn't matter if it was a hoax call, because when child protective services workers responded to the ranch, they saw evidence of sexual abuse.

Fischer blamed the Texas raid and the problems of the FLDS Church on its leader, Warren Jeffs.

"I believe it's vitally important that these people somehow come to grips with the goofiness of their leader," Fischer said. "There's many good people. There's many innocent people there that are caught up as victims."

With 464 children in the custody of Texas CPS, the situation has many trying to reach out to help.

At a town hall meeting in St. George on Thursday, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff asked how many from the fundamentalist communities had family members involved in the raid. Hundreds of hands shot up. Shurtleff then asked how many would be willing to take in the seized children as "kinship placements" in a foster care situation. The hands remained high in the air.

"There have been contacts by people from Texas to their apostate relatives, saying 'Will you take my kids?"' Hoole said.

One man who was ordered to "repent from a distance" by FLDS leaders drove 1,200 miles from his home in Nevada to Texas to give a DNA sample last month.

"I do know there have been a couple of former members floating around who believe their children are involved in this and are trying to find a way to assert their parental rights," said Rod Parker, an attorney who is acting as a spokesman for the FLDS Church.

In the end, Fischer agreed to help where he could.

"I've given a lot of thought to it," he said.

Fischer declined to say what exactly he agreed to do to help, but said he is working on a "long-term solution" that has some initial support of some FLDS and some CPS.

"There's not going to be any perfect solution," he said. "A perfect solution does not exist here."

---

E-mail: bwinslow@desnews.com