By Jessica Boehm | Axios
Polygamy is outlawed in the state constitution, but there are still likely hundreds of Arizonans who engage in plural marriages.
Why it matters: Some religions — namely, the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (FLDS) — view plural marriage as a tenet of their faith, but several polygamist leaders have used the practice to force underage girls into marriage and commit other abuses.
Driving the news: Samuel Bateman, the leader of an Arizona polygamous offshoot of the FLDS, was sentenced to 50 years in prison last week for arranging sexual encounters with girls as young as 9 years old and for scheming to kidnap them from protective custody.
- Bateman claimed to have 20 spiritual “wives.”
The intrigue: Bateman and other polygamists who ended up in prison were convicted of child abuse, sexual assault or financial crimes — not polygamy.
The big picture: The state constitution says: “Polygamous or plural marriages, or polygamous cohabitation, are forever prohibited within this state.”
Yes, but: The Legislature never passed a statute specifying the penalties for violating the constitution’s ban, so it’s unenforceable, former Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard told Axios.
“Part of the issue with prosecuting polygamy–and child marriages–is compiling sufficient evidence to support bringing charges in the first place. Generally, a crime victim is willing to provide testimonial evidence, or sometimes physical evidence from a medical examination, to provide an adequate foundation for charging. But in the case of polygamy, perpetrators use various types of abuse and brainwashing to force their victims into compliance and isolation—leaving minimal evidence for investigators to support and bring charges.”
-Rose Law Group family law attorney Ashley Hutton
