Warren Jeffs: A Wanted Man

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As an infamous religious leader, Warren Jeffs had the ability to gain people’s trust and loyalty. He influenced many by exerting his power and authority in brainwashing individuals with religion. His home base is located in the Utah–Arizona area, where he is known to have about 40 wives and 56 children in his compound. Jeffs goes beyond what any human being has by taking advantage of religion to obtain supporters through his ideals and practices of Mormonism into the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS) where he considers himself a prophet. Even after being imprisoned, he had influence to control his church even from behind bars. His sect is secluded from society protected by walls and cameras to prevent government interference, in the hopes that others would not be able to detect what occurs within the walls of the cult. He gained recognition in 2006 by being included in the top Ten Most Wanted List for arranged marriages. By 2011, he was convicted after a FBI raid on his compound in Texas due to assault on underage girls from ages 12 and 15 years old. Through his beliefs on polygamy, Jeffs has created stringent rules, religion, and manipulation.
While polygamy is illegal in America, there are roughly 30,000 to 50,000 people who live in polygamous families. According to an article in the International Business Times, about “forty thousand people in America are self-described Mormon fundamentalist who practice plural marriage and the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Chris of Latter Day Saints remains the largest organized fundamentalist group in the world.” Jeffs grew up in a religious community known as FLDS, a radical branch from Mormonism, but it is not recognized within the mainstream Mormon Church....

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...een as intimating by his members through his body language rather than words.

Works Cited

Adams, Brooke. "Warren Jeffs Profile: Thou Shalt Obey." Salt Lake Tribune(2004).
Jones, Melanie. "Warren Jeffs: Polygamous Leader Manipulates Sect From Prison as FLDS Splinters." Editorial. International Business Times. IBT Media Inc., 16 Jan. 2012. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.

Newcomb, Alyssa. "Polygamist Leader Warren Orders Only 15 Men To Father FLDS Kids." ABC News. ABC News Network, 21 June 2012. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.

Singular, Stephen. When Men Become Gods: Mormon Polygamist Warren Jeffs, His cult of Fear, and the Women Who Fought Back. Macmillan, 2009.

"Warren Steed Jeffs." 2014. The Biography.com website. Apr 20 2014

Whitehurst, Lindsay. "Rules for Warren Jeffs' Followers Grow More Restrictive." Editorial. The Salt Lake Tribune [Salt Lake City] 15 Dec. 2011. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.

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