Comments about ‘Suit may destroy UEP Trust of FLDS’

"Innocent beneficiaries"? Um, no... Polygamy IS still against the law. Every single person who "presently reside(s) in houses on Trust property" is breaking the law by living in polygamy. There are no innocents here, except the children who don't have a choice; and they should be removed and placed with loving, law-abiding families.

I hope these FLDS do not loose their homes because the trust is sued and depleted of assets.

The FLDS do need to make changes. It is wrong that they kick young teen boys out before they are able to make a living on their own.

What kind of religion is this?

Sounds like a terrible religion to me.

Everyone in this FLDS organization hides all of there money and property in this trust. There is no other way to go after them.

They all claim to own nothing, have no income or assests that you could garnish or attach liens to because it is all in the trust.

None of the homes, companies, or vehcile or any other property is in individuals names. It all belongs to the trust.

There is no other way!

These FLDS people are using the church to do their misdeeds. It is about time someone put a hold on their assets that have kept them financially afloat. It is ludicrous to use a "church" for this kind of thing. It is a mockery to others or the real LDS faith, who (FLDS) at the same time us the doctrine as if it was condone by present day LDS's. The leaders, Warren Jeffs included must answer to a higher law eventually. Every one of those mislead members in his following should be compensated and go on with normal lives. When are his followers going to get it that they have been deceived? It doesn't take an angelic visit to know this, DUH! It is a brain washing that took over and advantage. Men of God know better. False prophets are NOT men of God and hold NO authority whatsoever. It is a sad tangled mess. Hasn't polygamy been ILLEGAL for over a hundred years? Shame on the legal system to enable such groups who cry freedom of religion. Oh, brother. Now there (FLDS) is the "cult" as plain as day. R U blind?

looks like all the FLDS people complaining about the new trust manager were way off base. At least he's trying to look out for the people that put the actual money into the trust.

I agree, break them up. Take the children away and charge the US taxpayers for it. They should have done this to the LDS church back in the 1800's as well. In fact, arrest all who commit adultry. Someone go arrest Hugh Heffner. Lets get on a roll, why not just outlaw religion? In fact, lets let the government raise and take care of all of us.

I dont agree with polygamy but understand that some do and it is part of their religious beliefs. We should be protected under the constitution with freedom of religion. If people want to have this in their religious beliefs then they should be able to do so.....Unless they infringe on the rights of others.

Polygyny is no more against the law than fornication or adultery is, and if started prosecuting for that, there wouldn't hardly be anyone left in the USA that wasn't in jail.

Justthefactsmaam

Isaiah said; Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field... (5:8)

When finances are intertwined it leaves you exposed to this sort of thing.

Those people who are part of the UEP trust have their entire life savings in it. Many of them are victims just as much as those who file suit.

Allowing the UEP to be pilfered by lawyers will create far more victims than we now have.

I strongly disagree with the FLDS religion and as an member of the LDS faith would dearly like to see them go away. I am not willing to deal unjustly with them to gain that end.

I doubt that Isaiah was talking about this specific situation; however, it does seem applicable.

"Innocent?" Oh COME ON!!!! Pathetic, misguided, unfortunate, and sad; YES. Innocent, not in a million years.

Didn't Mr. Shields defend Warren Jeffs during his first trial? Now he is saying that there are so many victims of Jeffs crimes that to sue the Fund would ruin it? He can't have it both ways. I hope this does go through. It's one thing to believe in polygamy, it's another to cover up and ignore statutory rape and abuse. Unfortunately they are now paying the price for years and years of looking the other way when these types of crimes occurred.

"Wall's attorney, Greg Hoole, said the lawsuit is not about making anybody rich but holding people accountable."

Jonathan: Yeah, right! Her past actions YELL otherwise.

I'm sorry, but there are many, many people who suffer much worse abuse than this young woman did. She is exposing her greediness! What she suffered is NOT worthy of millions of dollars from anybody. Since the FLDS are living their version of the United Order (we are talking economically here, not about the issue of polygamy, which is a totally separate issue), all that some of them have worked their lifetimes for is tied up in the assets of that trust. I can't see any fairness at all in depriving people of what is legitimately theirs from the labors of their own hands to compensate one person who should sue the perpetrator if that person is indeed found guilty of rape. Since Jeffs has been, she can sue him, too. She may be able to justify a claim against their assets. But not on those of hundreds of other people who did her no harm.
And no, I am not FLDS and I don't live in Utah.

Rather than go through the courts, this should go through arbitration.

My latest statistics on child rape show that out of a population of 700 on the ranch, there are 3 girls without children, 5 girls with children, 15 women with children and about 9 women that may have been raped but don't have a child to prove it. The grand total is about 32 child rape victims out of 700 people. Applying percentages to a population of 10,000, there may be 448 rape victims. If this is true, I question whether adults who failed to protect so many children should be entitled to keep their homes.

No decision is going to be fair. Not everyone can prove what they put into the trust. Divide the trust into three portions. The first portion gets divided evenly among the 10,000 members, the second portion gets divided proportionately based on what people can prove they put into the trust and the third portion gets divided among the identified victims who desire compensation. Since the trust represents the assets of the FLDS organization, the victims should be entitled to some compensation, but it shouldn't be disproportionately large.

re - "To Law Abiding Citizen" 12:59pm

I agree with just about everything you said (or implied through sarcasm) except you're missing one thing.

The FLDS certainly DO infringe on the rights of others, especially their followers, and most especially the children.

Of course, this has nothing to do with polygamy, but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway.

I still don't understand why people are so against polygamy. I understand being against religious extremists like the FLDS, but polygamy is probably their least intrusive practice.....

Are you going to tell a rape victim how much their experiance was worth? How about 2 years of constant rape? What about 7 misscarriges, and haveing a still born at 15? You say that she doesnt deserve to be compisated? You clown..... She was the one who brought this to a halt for so many other girls. Who knows how many have been helped. DO YOU? I think you dont know anything about it, you obviously dont know her story. I do.

Gal50- even if your numbers are correct and I find the grand total of 32 "possible" child rapes to be extremely high, almost matching the 26 "disputed minors" who were in fact 22, 27, 29 and one as old as 37 with 4 almost grown children.
Even if that WAS in fact the correct number, it is still lower than the national "normal" statistics of 1 in 4 girls will be a sexual victim before age 18 and 1 in 5 boys will be sexually assaulted before age 18.
So far, after two months of having the children in foster care being interviewed by some of the "best" investigators Texas CPS had to offer, not one single boy has been found to be a victim of sexual assault by an adult.
Compare that with 1 in 5 boys in the USA.

Not after money, Elissa?:You claim she is only after cash.

At the end of this report it quotes her attorneys saying, and i am quoting the report:"Elissa Wall has made it very clear she is not going to keep any of the money should it be awarded to her".

Now if her representaion is saying that publicly how can you call her greedy? She wrote a book? Well now, how dare she!!!
How dare she share her story and shed light on the horrors that happen to small children, and young girls in the FLDS! Sure smells like greed to me. She deserves whatever she can get, and the more truth put out the better. How quickly people are willing to forget about what she went through is astounding to me.

Since When did FLDS Become a church? They are a Corporation LLC.
It certainly wasnt run like a church,, it was run Like HITLER would of run the SS.
Its never been registered as a Church.

... to compensation for being raped with the blessing of the FLDS people. All of the adults in the FLDS knew that young girls were being forced into marriages to older men, many of them MUCH older, but none of the adults -- parents, church leaders, doctors -- did anything to stop the practice, in fact they encouraged and supported it.

Just because they've tied up all of their assests in a trust doesn't mean that they are immune from having to compensate the victims of their abuse.

I don't have a problem with polygamy. I do have a serious problem with the many of the other illegal practices the FLDS have used to maintain their polygamous lifestyle -- the coersion, the brainwashing, the denial of rights, reassigning families, kicking young boys out of the community, forcing young girls into marriages, and welfare fraud.

Good grief! All these FLDS sites certainly bring out all those who have deranged thinking. Polygamy is most definitely for the devilish, and lusty lowlifes! You people amaze the HECK out of me.