God has spoken... (San Angelo, Eldorado: felony, house, live in)

[CptnRn]

Polygamist sect leader Warren Jeffs broke his silence during court testimony Friday to read a statement from God. The jury had been dismissed while he read the statement.

Moderator cut: copyrighted material

Jeffs threatens court with Biblical repercussions (http://www.statesman.com/news/nation/jeffs-threatens-court-with-biblical-repercussions-1668295.html?cxtype=rss_ece_frontpage - broken link)

A polygamist sect leader defending himself against sexual assault charges broke his silence Friday with a 55-minute sermon defending plural marriages as divine and later said God would visit "sickness and death" on those involved if his trial wasn't immediately stopped.
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The FLDS made headlines nationwide in 2008, when authorities raided its compound in tiny Eldorado, about 45 miles from San Angelo, after hearing allegations that young girls were being forced into polygamist marriages. Moderator cut: copyrighted material

I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm sure glad I don't live in one of those Counties. Schleicher County is home to the YFZ Ranch, the reported headquarters of the FLDS movement headed by Warren Jeffs. The trial is taking place in San Angelo, Texas, Tom Green county. I wonder if any other counties are involved?

[mickey65]

He might as well prepare himself for a lot of prison time to come!

Hopefully they put him in General Population - he can put "god" to the test and see if he'll save his ass then!

[dave bacon]

Another good example of why they are called religious nuts!

[catman]

I don't know that the counties can be blamed. Perhaps Schleicher County should have been more proactive, but Tom Green county? That's where the imbecile is being tried. Don't blame the counties. Blame the free pass that religion gets, no matter how insane, until it becomes so outrageous that its excesses can't possibly be ignored.

[CptnRn]

Originally Posted by catman

I don't know that the counties can be blamed. Perhaps Schleicher County should have been more proactive, but Tom Green county? That's where the imbecile is being tried. Don't blame the counties. Blame the free pass that religion gets, no matter how insane, until it becomes so outrageous that its excesses can't possibly be ignored.

Apparantly God blames the counties.

[lonestar2007]

Rational people quickly dismiss such outrageous, inane statements as these. The man is an evil person and hopefully gets his just rewards here on earth and in the after life as well.

[Pontificator]

If they'd stream this live, I could deactivate my Netflix.

[jtur88]

You mean, God has discontinued his long-standing policy of working His wonders in mysterious ways? And decided to elucidate them?

Regarding the counties, Schleicher has a very small population, and practically everyone know s each other. I'm presuming that moving the trial to Tom Green is simply a judicial change of venue, which is done all the time, wherever there would be difficulty empaneling an impartial jury in the county that would normally have jurisdiction. Change of venue is an everyday occurrence in small, rural counties. In this case, there might not even be enough resources or personnel in the Schleicher County court system to accommodate a trial that would require so many witnesses. I would guess that Schleicher has a court house with a court room in it, but there is only a district or circuit judge, who spends no more than a few days a month hearing cases in that county. With a county population of less than 3,000, Schleicher County courts handle an average of less than ten felony cases a year, and they are probably almost all plea bargained, so it is possible that they might go a whole year at a time without a criminal case going to jury.

As for Jeffs himself, you are lowering your self to his level, if you believe that polygamy is, in and of itself, "evil" and that an advocate of it is deserving of the kind of Old Testament punishment you are so gleefully tossing around.

[ScoPro]

I don't think polygamy is evil, but child rape certainly is.

[Boompa]

Did he get the governors permission to speak directly to GOD