Were 'lost boys' lured by booze?

"They got a lot of those kids drunk," said a 16-year-old girl who did not want to be identified. She grew up in Hildale, a polygamous community sharing the Utah/Arizona border with its more populous twin, Colorado City. "Every last child there was under age. Alcohol was given to any child who wanted it."

She said an attorney talked to each teen, apparently attempting to determine who would be willing to speak out about why they had been made outcasts from the communities.

"I told my mom about it as soon as we got back," she said. "It was crazy. Most of the things the kids said up there, they were drunk and they lied," said the girl, who now lives in St. George where she works and attends high school. "It was just sad. Those kids were all saying their parents kicked them out. But they weren't; they had a choice."

Another 17-year-old boy who attended the party said, "It was pretty weird. They (the adults) just said 'sure' when kids asked about beer and would point them toward it in the kitchen.

"They told us they wouldn't hurt our families or the Crick (a slang name for Colorado City)," the boy said. "I think they just wanted to get to Warren Jeffs."

The FLDS leader has reportedly begun a campaign of his own the past two years — to rid the church and the towns of Colorado City and Hildale of members who aren't strictly abiding by FLDS church standards.

People have reportedly been banished from the towns for sins such as wanting to attend a public school or for associating with non-FLDS members. Others say that good men are being excommunicated for sins they thought were already forgiven by a previous FLDS prophet.

While dozens of teenagers who grew up in the twin communities accepted Fischer's offer of free transportation, hotel rooms, meals, Lagoon passes and up to $500 cash to spend the weekend in Salt Lake along with attending the press conference, there were others who turned the offer down.

"One of his guys called me and asked if I wanted to start some stuff against Warren Jeffs," said George Barlow, 20, who is married and working full time. "He said they were willing to pay me $500 for the trip up, to take me to a game, put me up in top-of-the-line hotels in Salt Lake City. I told him I didn't care for it."

Dan Timpson, 19, said he turned down a similar offer.

"I didn't have to run away from home. My dad helped me; he let me do that and let me make my own choice," said Timpson, who said he was 17 when he left his home in Colorado City and now works with his father in a tile-setting business. "I have no problem with the folks out there. I left the place with a good feeling. They're good people, and I personally think people should live the way they want."

Fischer has said the major issue being addressed by Diversity is the treatment of children in the polygamous families, claiming that church leaders hide behind freedom of religion protection in the Constitution while it systematically destroys families.

"We tried to get as many to come forward as possible, but many are so recently expelled or left on their own, they're afraid," Fischer said. "We just want to let all of them know we want to help them. I hope some good can come from what we are doing. We just feel if nobody does anything, no good will ever happen."

Fischer said many of the teenage boys kicked out of their homes have little more than an eighth-grade education.

"Our whole purpose is to try and get them educated," he said. "We've got to be serious about this. So much of what our drive is here is to stimulate the intellect."

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E-mail: nperkins@desnews.com