The Short Creek men were jailed for two months and, although they were released on bail, Bradley said none of them was ever prosecuted. After two years under court custody, every man, woman and child returned to Short Creek, even though the women were given a chance to leave with state help. Bradley said her research showed that child-bride marriages were not the norm back then, as assumed; rather, the average age of new wives was 19.

Yet there are some differences between Arizona 1953 and Texas 2008. Bradley said today there seems to be less of a tolerance for child abuse. The public is also more aware of polygamy cases involving underage marriages. Bradley said the prosecutions of Kingston clan members, Tom Green and FLDS leader Warren Jeffs led up to Eldorado.

Texas authorities are also operating under the shadow of the 1993 siege at Waco, in which 82 members of a Branch-Davidian sect died during a standoff and fire.

The YFZ Ranch is an important place for FLDS members. It is the site where they have built their first temple, which has been entered and searched by police. Bradley called that move "huge" and one that could have heightened tensions.

However, "one thing that it points to is their lack of willingness to resort to violence. One would think that would be the moment," she said.

What happens now in Texas will shape the future of the FLDS Church, Bradley said. If Texas authorities allow the women and children to go back, they will likely return and seal themselves off from the outside world even more.

"The raid in '53 didn't put an end to polygamy," she said.

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E-mail: gfattah@desnews.com