Justice Department sues Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City over alleged civil rights violations against non-FLDS residents

The U.S. Justice Department has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Arizona, alleging that local officials have enabled a campaign of intimidation against non-members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (FLDS). The lawsuit claims that city leaders and law enforcement have for decades acted on the directives of FLDS leader Warren Jeffs, who is currently serving a life sentence in Texas after being convicted on child sex and bigamy charges.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Arizona, states that the cities’ governments, including the Marshal’s Office, have been deployed to carry out the will and dictates of FLDS leaders, particularly Jeffs and those to whom he delegates authority. It alleges that the Marshal’s Office has improperly used its law enforcement authority to enforce the edicts of the FLDS, to the detriment of non-FLDS members.

One instance of alleged misconduct described in the suit involves law enforcement officers rounding up all dogs and shooting them in a “slaughter pit” outside town on specific orders from Jeffs. The lawsuit also claims that officers have regularly allowed FLDS members to victimize non-members by destroying their crops, vandalizing property, and trespassing.

Federal officials further allege that officers have made traffic stops and arrests without cause, kept underage brides from fleeing, and prevented children of non-FLDS members from using a public playground. The lawsuit accuses city departments of refusing to provide electricity or water service to non-members, thereby denying them basic municipal services.

Attorney Blake Hamilton, representing the Justice Department, stated that there is no evidence to support the claim that non-FLDS members are treated differently. The lawsuit seeks to hold the towns accountable for violating constitutional rights and to ensure that all residents are treated fairly and justly.

Source: Read the original report