FLDS hearings advance amid confusion, angst

SAN ANGELO, Texas — The massive child custody case involving hundreds of children taken from the Fundamentalist LDS Church's YFZ Ranch lurches forward with another full day of status hearings today addressing what it will take to reunite parents with their children.

Hearings held simultaneously in five courtrooms in the past two days have already produced a number of revelations, confusion and bitterness.

During a hearing Tuesday afternoon, Dan Jessop asked one judge for some explanations: "What is CPS's purpose and reasons for doing this and what good this does for me and my family?"

FLDS members continue to deny the allegations of abuse on the YFZ Ranch — that girls were groomed to become child brides and boys would grow up to be predators. In fact, Child Protective Services caseworkers were hard-pressed to articulate abuse for any of the families that sat before them in court.

"Inch by inch, and day by day, the truth is starting to come out about what's really happening here," said Rod Parker, a Salt Lake attorney acting as a spokesman for the FLDS Church. "What we're finding is the parents haven't done anything wrong, and the state can't articulate as to any parent what they did."

Texas child welfare authorities maintain that children on the ranch were abused or at risk of abuse. During one hearing on Tuesday for a 1-year-old boy, it was revealed that the child's mother is 17. Theoretically, that means she was 15 when her son was conceived.

The baby's father did not show up in court. The hearing was continued because the mother is eight months pregnant now.

"We've always known that there are one or two or three examples of that out there," Parker told the Deseret News. "What I've always been denying is there are 26 or 31 examples, which is what CPS has claimed."

CPS declined to say if there were more cases like that pending. "We continue to present evidence each day to the courts for consideration," said spokeswoman Marleigh Meisner.

Ex-FLDS

Former members who have been cast out of the polygamous sect are now stepping forward to offer custody solutions.

Arthur L. Barlow drove thousands of miles from his home in southern Utah to appear in court alongside his 35-year-old estranged wife, Esther.

Barlow, 59, said he was excommunicated from the FLDS Church four years ago, but his wives remained. He learned that his children were in Texas custody when a brother-in-law called him, asking if he could help.

He hasn't seen Esther, or the five children he had with her, since the excommunication. He recently visited his 6-year-old daughter, who he said didn't recognize him at first.

"I chose to stay away and let them have a life," he said Tuesday.