From Deseret News archives:
Futures of Jeffs, followers iffy
Through all of the previous court hearings in his rape-as-an-accomplice trial, the dozen or so faithful members of the Fundamentalist LDS Church stood as a sign of respect every time he entered or exited the St. George courtroom.
On Nov. 20, they did not.
A statement issued by Jeffs' lawyers, announcing that he "resigned as president of the Corporation of the President of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Inc." may explain why. Jeffs' lawyers said Wednesday he resigned the day he was sentenced.
"The fact they did not stand up, we felt something had happened relative to his standing as prophet," said Washington County Sheriff Kirk Smith.
It is unclear if Jeffs has renounced his role as prophet of the FLDS faith. He did so in several conversations with family and followers that were taped while he was incarcerated in Washington County's Purgatory Jail. He later recanted his renouncement, his attorneys said, and it coincided with a suicide attempt.
Jeffs is now in the Utah State Prison, where he has begun serving two five-to-life sentences for performing a marriage between then-14-year-old Elissa Wall and her 19-year-old cousin, Allen Steed. Currently, Jeffs is undergoing a five-week orientation course for new inmates.
"He's doing just fine," Utah Department of Corrections spokeswoman Angie Welling said Wednesday. "There have been no behavioral issues, no write-ups."
Wall had no comment on Jeffs' resignation, her attorneys told the Deseret Morning News.
"No comment," said deputy Washington County Attorney Brian Filter.
Meanwhile, Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff offered a sort-of "olive branch" to whomever may succeed Jeffs — if they stop performing child-bride marriages and abusing women and children.
"Whoever the new president is, I would be happy to meet with him and let him ask questions and let him know what we've been about the past seven years," Shurtleff told the Deseret Morning News. "I hope it will be more of an open society in the future."
Fallout
This latest declaration has many wondering what the future holds for Jeffs' thousands of followers in the polygamous border towns of Hildale, Utah; Colorado City, Ariz.; and enclaves scattered across the West. Many ex-members learned of Jeffs' resignation from a Deseret Morning News reporter.
"He could still be everything he claims he is (in a religious context,) except he's not president of that corporation anymore," said Isaac Wyler, who lives in Colorado City.
Law enforcement officers, who have pursued Jeffs for years, are stunned.
