Judge Rules Births Not Recorded at FLDS Compound in South Dakota

A South Dakota judge’s ruling has confirmed that children were born on a remote Black Hills compound operated by the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), a polygamous religious group. The decision, issued in September by Seventh Circuit Judge Jeff W. Davis, revealed that births occurred on the compound near Pringle and were not recorded with the state as required by law.

The judge granted birth certificates to two girls who, according to their mother, were born a decade ago on the Custer County compound. Until this ruling, no birth certificate had ever been issued to a resident of the compound, which is secured by barbed-wire fences and guarded by a watch tower. The lack of official records has long raised concerns about the group’s practices and the well-being of its members.

The failure to obtain birth certificates for children of FLDS members follows a directive given in 2002 by FLDS leader Warren Jeffs and religious elder Sam Barlow. In an audiotape of a speech by Jeffs and Barlow, the two leaders told other FLDS elders to not register births because doing so would provide information about the age of the child’s mother and the identity of the father, which they claimed could implicate church members for having sexual relations with minors.

The lack of birth certificates gives FLDS elders significant control over children born and raised within the polygamous community, according to Utah attorney Roger Hoole, who represented the mother in the South Dakota case. Hoole, who has extensive experience representing individuals who have fled the FLDS church, noted that the absence of official records allows the group to maintain a level of secrecy and authority over its members.

The South Dakota Department of Health confirmed in May that prior to the ruling, no births or deaths had ever been recorded from the compound’s Farmer Road address. South Dakota law requires birth registration within seven days, but failure to do so does not carry criminal penalties. State Attorney General Marty Jackley, a Republican candidate for governor, acknowledged concerns about the compound but stated that failure to obtain birth certificates eight to 10 years ago would amount to “stale” evidence, lacking the legal basis for law enforcement action.

Jackley urged anyone with knowledge of illegal activity to come forward, emphasizing the constitutional right of citizens to report such matters. The case highlights the ongoing challenges of monitoring and addressing the activities of religious groups that operate in secrecy, raising questions about accountability and the protection of vulnerable individuals.

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