Fight over evidence delays Jeffs' hearing

Polygamist leader Warren Jeffs' next court appearance has been delayed until further notice.

A judge in St. George's 5th District Court signed an order Tuesday afternoon canceling next week's hearing on a motion to suppress evidence seized when the FBI arrested Jeffs last year. No future date was set and no reason was given for the continuance.

"Legal issues have led to the court continuing the hearing," deputy Washington County Attorney Brian Filter said Tuesday, declining to elaborate.

The decision comes as new papers were filed in federal court in Salt Lake City, challenging the government's possession of evidence that the FBI seized when it arrested Jeffs. The court documents include a declaration from a member of the Fundamentalist LDS Church, providing a rare glimpse into the inner workings of the polygamous sect.

"The need to protect such records from disclosure stems from the long history of persecution, ridicule, harassment and physical assault of the faithful by non-members and apostates," FLDS member Alvin S. Barlow Sr. wrote in the declaration. "This history of persecution has persisted since the Prophet Joseph Smith founded the Church and continues today in great force against the followers of the FLDS."

Jeffs, 51, was on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list when he was arrested during a traffic stop outside Las Vegas last August.

Inside the Cadillac Escalade that Jeffs was riding in, the FBI found computers, religious books, a duffel bag of letters, pre-paid cell phones, pre-paid credit cards and more than $57,000 in cash, among other items. All of the evidence has been the subject of a legal battle playing out in federal courtrooms in Nevada and Utah.

Jeffs' lawyers have filed federal motions to have the evidence declared "protected" under the FLDS leader's constitutional right to freedom of religion. The U.S. Attorney's Office in Utah says Jeffs' religious beliefs are not being attacked.

To bolster their case, defense attorneys had Barlow, a member of the FLDS Church for 69 years, file the declaration. He outlines the FLDS Church's history and beliefs, dating back to the founding of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints by Joseph Smith in the 1830s. The FLDS Church is a breakaway sect.

Barlow said they share similar beliefs — but differ on polygamy. He said that Jeffs is considered the current president and prophet of the FLDS Church and has been since 2002.

Deseret Morning News graphic   Declaration of Alvin S. Barlow, Sr.(827kb .pdf file)