Saturday, May 17, 2003
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

POLYGAMOUS ARIZONA COMMUNITY: Church eviction effort detailed in courtroom

Defense says refusal to consent to planned marriage at center of case

KINGMAN, Ariz. -- A church request to evict a man from property in the predominantly polygamous northern Arizona community of Colorado City has shined light on the remote community and the controversial lifestyle of many of its residents.

During a five-hour hearing Thursday in Mohave County Superior Court, attorney Rodney Parker argued that Milton Holm was an at-will tenant of the United Effort Plan Trust, described as a tool used by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to command the loyalty of its members.

Parker argued that Holm fell out of favor with the church, that the church removed him and his wife, Lenore, as members, and that the church enjoyed the right to remove nonmembers from property owned by the church-controlled trust.

"There's no dispute that they are not members of the church, so their right to the property has expired," Parker said.

Defense attorney George McKay protested that the eviction effort was based on Lenore Holm's refusal to consent to the planned Jan. 15, 2000, marriage of her then 16-year-old daughter, Nicole, to Wynn Jessop, 39.

When testifying, Lenore Holm conceded she initially consented, but later withdrew her support for the marriage. Holm admitted she opposes church-arranged marriages of underage girls to older men.

"I have actively wanted to see these rapes of underage girls stopped," Holm testified. "In the name of God they're doing it, and it's awful and they think it's religion."

Parker said allegations of sexual abuse and the propriety of plural marriages in a state where polygamy is illegal are irrelevant to the eviction effort. He said motivation is not an issue in an environment where the church can evict an at-will tenant.

In addition to the marriage rejection, Parker noted Milton Holm was at odds with the church for violating its clean-living principles because of his drinking problems and the abuse of his wife and one of their children.

McKay implied the Holms are being singled out for persecution because a number of other Colorado City residents who are nonmembers continue to be allowed to live on church land.

McKay also said the Holms should at least be compensated if evicted, having put their time, talent, effort and money into building a six-bedroom, 5,000-square-foot home over the years. Parker said compensation can be argued another day and that eviction is the only question before the court.

Judge James Chavez said he would consider the testimony and evidence presented during the hearing.

While Lenore Holm complained of marriages involving underage females, Parker noted Lenore Holm's father had five underage wives. Milton Holm testified his dad fathered 30 children.

Milton Holm said it was the late church prophet Leroy Johnson who first authorized him taking a lot in 1976. He testified he later kept successor Rulon Jeffs up to date on his property development progress before Jeffs died and the leadership torch was passed to Warren Jeffs.

Warren Jeffs' brother Leroy, one of five UEP trustees, told Chavez the church uses the trust to provide a place where "believers" or "saints" will gather in the afterlife, unified by belief and purpose.

Asked about the widespread practice of plural marriage in a state where polygamy is illegal, Leroy Jeffs replied, "We believe that plural marriage is a celestial privilege and principle of our faith."