Warren Jeffs, left, and a defense attorney listen to testimony during a hearing Tuesday in St. George, Utah. Jeffs is leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.
Photos by The Associated Press.
Supporters of Warren Jeffs make their way into the courthouse prior to a motion hearing Tuesday in St. George, Utah. Jeffs, leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, is charged with rape as an accomplice in the marriage of a 14-year-old girl to a 19-year-old cousin in 2001.
ST. GEORGE, Utah -- A judge rejected a request Tuesday to move the trial of a polygamous-sect leader to Salt Lake City but said he would change his mind if he can't seat a fair-minded jury.
Fifth District Judge James Shumate also said jury selection in the trial of Warren Jeffs would be conducted in private.
Advertisement
Jeffs, 51, leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, is charged with rape as an accomplice in the spiritual marriage of a 14-year-old girl to a 19-year-old cousin in 2001.
His attorneys presented polling data to support their argument that people in Washington County can't be fair because they've been exposed to months of negative news reports about Jeffs.
Shumate said the trial will stay in southern Utah, but he pledged to move it "immediately" if too many prospective jurors can't be impartial.
The trial had been set to begin April 23, but it was postponed last week. No new date has been set.
Defense attorney Wally Bugden asked Shumate to suspend the trial so his ruling can be appealed to the Utah Supreme Court.
The judge rejected that request as well, saying he wouldn't stop the case from proceeding unless ordered by the state's highest court.
At the close of the hearing, Jeffs stood and asked permission to approach Shumate to discuss something that he needed to "take care of." Shumate told Jeffs to talk to his attorneys.
Prosecutors contend they can prove two instances when Jeffs used his position of trust as a church prophet to prevail upon the girl to have sex with her older cousin against her wishes.
In 2001, they were members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an insular sect of nearly 10,000 which practices polygamy in arranged marriages. The majority of church members live in the twin border towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., about 45 miles east of St. George.
Defense attorneys said a poll taken in early February shows news reports have soured the jury pool against Jeffs. The survey showed 52 percent of 210 Washington County respondents believe he is "definitely guilty."
In Salt Lake County, 39 percent of 206 respondents said Jeffs was "definitely guilty." The survey was conducted Feb. 5-14 and has an error margin of 6.9 percentage points.
Respondents said most of their information about the case came from the news media.
Salt Lake City pollster Dan Jones, who conducted the survey, said the 13 percentage point split between counties is significant. Bugden said the poll is proof of how the media have swayed public opinion.
Shumate agreed in part, saying publicity may have impeded the court's ability to seat an impartial jury.
"What I do not know is whether or not it has been fatally impaired," he said. "And I cannot know until I attempt to empanel a jury."
Earlier Tuesday, Shumate rejected Jeffs' lawyers' challenge to Utah's rape law. Pointing to the word "entice," Jeffs' attorneys said the law was too vague to prosecute him on charges of rape as an accomplice.
The young woman has said she was unwilling to marry her older cousin but that Jeffs told her it was her religious duty to participate.
"Any words to encourage her to go against her will could easily be seen as enticement," Shumate said.
Fifteen FLDS church members were in the courtroom. Jeffs turned and smiled at them after they stood when he entered the courtroom.
Jeffs also faces felony sex charges in Mohave County, Ariz., accused of involvement in two underage marriages, and is under federal indictment for unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
