As he grew older, Stephen turned out to be as rebellious as his own father had been. Paul Kingston, they said, has 17 wives and nearly 50 children. In the kitchen, he opened a closet and popped a hatch in the floor that led down to a dark, musty basement. By the time he was 30, he would have more than 10. When he had finished, he walked toward Stephen, who was sitting on the tractor. She's since left the marriage and wants the legal marriage age raised to 18. His arms are sunburned and his hands calloused from long days moving the irrigation pipes that water the fields. One of them approached the front door while the other kept a lookout. Viewers Can Watch Prince Harry Talk to a Trauma Expert for $33.09 Over the last four years, these audits have occurred for DCCS members at a rate 9.5 times higher than the average population. It was time. When youre three years old, they start training you what to say if people talk to you, recalls Jeremy Tucker, a 32-year-old former member of the cult, who now works in construction. He went days at a time without eating, convinced it helped provoke visions, and believed that by the laying on of hands he could heal his followers from sickness and disease. 1 choice was not her fathers. She was definitely the pick of the litter, and thats why Paul got her, Ron recalls. To deaden his feelings of isolation, he started smoking a lot of pot and sitting around the house all day listening to country music. So far, however, despite Shurtleffs efforts, the insular and highly secretive nature of the Order has prevented him from finding sufficient evidence to bring a case strong enough to dismantle the clan. You had to be, like, a son of the prophet to know where it was.. (Photo courtesy Shanell DeRieux) John Daniel Kingston, front center, kneels in front of three of his daughters as they hold their wedding certificates July 3, 2008, in Grand Junction, Colo. Shanell DeRieux, second row left, was 18; the other two girls were 16. Now, former members say, girls who will be plural wives meaning they have only a spiritual marriage to their husband are left alone until they are 18 so laws about sex with a minor wont apply. After the wedding, Richaun chose the name Knight randomly a practice designed to prevent prosecutors from proving that men in the Order have multiple wives. Paul E. Kingston, considered the top man, signed as a witness for four of the marriages that The Tribune found outside Utah. If the father believes his son received true direction from God, the son is sent to Paul Kingston or one of the people he designates to consider marriages. If the father believes his son received true direction from God, the son is sent to Paul Kingston or one of the people he designates to consider marriages. All the families belong to the Davis County Cooperative Society. These days Stephen works on a cattle ranch near the Idaho border, just down the road from where he grew up. It was just the best choice, some say, among their bad options. The . Each time turning up no significant violations or nothing at all. Its all political, Jessica said. He slept with a different one each night, in accordance with their ovulation cycles, and sometimes disappeared during lunch to have sex with a favorite. The clan kids from there would come to school not properly dressed for the cold, and they were always getting in fights. John Daniel Kingston, who according to court testimony once had 14 wives, was on hand in 2011, when his sons held an open house at the Washakie production plant in Plymouth near Interstate 15 and . A short, blustery man with a hair-trigger temper, Daniel Kingston had reportedly once kidnapped two boys at gunpoint and led them out to the Great Salt Lake (the charges were later dropped). She called her sister-in-law Patty Kingston, who lived across town. To hide the scope of his organization, J.O. Jessicas dad told her the wife can get only as high as her husband rises. She also is a star of "Escaping Polygamy." Their neighbors had no idea that the family were prominent members of the Kingston clan, the most powerful polygamist cult in America and one of the most dangerous. She, in turn, wrote a letter to the judge on their behalf, and the case was settled without a trial. Jessica said her husband was on a group text that went around listing girls or women who had not yet married with jokes about how old the females were getting. deductible, Report a missed paper by emailingsubscribe@sltrib.comor calling801-237-2900, For e-edition questions or comments, contact customer support801-237-2900or emailsubscribe@sltrib.com. She also felt a religious call to wed and saw herself as mature enough to undertake such a commitment. Complete statement from Davis County Cooperative Society: For decades, the DCCS has encouraged its members to be well-educated, well-informed, independent thinkers. He had yet to lose his hair, and thanks to his fanatical devotion to healthy food and alternative medicine, he had the ropy build of a well-toned athlete. Instead, she volunteered for extra shifts at the Kingston Group-run coal mine near Huntington, where she worked as a dispatcher. When Paul turned 21, he married Richaun Dye. Did the Utah Legislature do enough to save the Great Salt Lake? Each daughter married one of their cousins, who also are pictured with their parents. A statement from the only higher education institution mentioned in the lawsuit, Salt Lake Community College, said it has not received any subpoenas or inquiries. Kingston had told gaming regulators in California. The Knight brothers were driving new trucks, and so were their friends, says Levi Kingston. For the marriages performed in Utah, Bill W. Stoddard signed as the officiant until his death in March. Later the Order reportedly bought slot machines from mob-controlled companies. September 1, 2018. One afternoon, as Stephen and his cousin were taking a break from fixing a tractor that had broken down in a hayfield, Daniel Kingston pulled up. If you ever do that again, he said, Ill blow your head off., It was an astonishing moment in the history of the clan. The suit says sect members might have obtained tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars through false applications. He inherited the top leadership position in 1987. That cousin is also a defendant in the lawsuit. The Salt Lake Tribune, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) public charity and contributions are tax Paul Elden Kingston is an accountant and attorney who has served as the Trustee-in-Trust of the Davis County Cooperative Society (DCCS), a Mormon fundamentalist denomination, [2] since 1987. Many children begin working before 10 . But he hopes that one day his family will be able to forgive him for leaving them behind. Her parents placed her in what she called a repentance home, where she wasnt allowed to communicate with anyone without supervision. To get out of this s----y situation, I have to get into another s----y situation, said Kollene Snow, who married at 16 and is DeRieuxs full sister. The family gathered in the living room. Within a year, Paul Kingston would take a fourth wife. The grift was exposed decades later, in the 1980s, when the clan paid a $350,000 settlement for swindling the government through welfare fraud. The Order's top man, Paul Kingston, counts a half-dozen such relatives among his 20-plus wives, according to ex-members and Attorney General's investigator Ron Barton. Sometimes his father read the Book of Mormon from the pulpit and talked about things regular Christians would recognize, like tithing or repentance. Known variously as "Brother Paul," "the leader," and "the man on the watchtower" by Order members, this unremarkable, balding middle-aged man reportedly has 27 wives and over 300 children. We want to hear it. The deputy heard the Brown boys knew who stole the gold but suddenly, without explanation, they and everyone in the clan clammed up. Women, meanwhile, allegedly gain status by being pure of blood and obedient, becoming the first wives of higher-ranking numbered men, and bearing many children. Paul Kingston, the top man within the Davis County Cooperative Society, also known as the Kingston Group or The Order, is accused of overseeing what the lawsuit calls a scheme. Businesses and individuals have the autonomy to choose and operate as they see fit as evidenced by a huge diversity of industry and management styles among members. Intermarriage of close. A Tale of Two Chads: More Drama From Nineties Band Live. If God gives him direction on whom to marry, he goes to his dad. was just as frugal as his brother he lived in a dilapidated shack with planks missing from the porch but he had a better head for business. Snow says she chose to get married to escape an abusive living situation. Girls who reach their mid- and late teens can start to feel the pressure to wed. Jessica Kingston said when word gets out that a boy or young man has asked a girls father for permission to marry her, friends and family are walking up to that girl asking, Did you pray about him?. (Paul Kingston and other leaders of the family ignored repeated requests for comment for this story. Snow contends her mother was one of the people who told her she needed to think about whom she was going to wed. Photo by Nate Carlisle, The Salt Lake Tribune | Shirley Hansen, seen here July 21, 2018, stands along 2100 South near State Street in Salt Lake City. The ones that misbehave, they try to push them to marry as soon as they can, Hansen said. Not desiring to be a plural wife doesnt necessarily mean she hoped to leave the Davis County Cooperative Society, also known as the Kingston Group. Two teenage boys had been spotted entering Rachel Youngs home. Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune As the first of Paul Kingstons many wives, Patty enjoyed a privileged role in the Order including access to vast wealth. Shanell DeRieux was married at 18 to a husband in the Kingston Group. 2023 NYP Holdings, Inc. 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He seemed like the most amazing guy, Stephen recalls. Jessica as well as Snow, DeRieux and Hansen all favor raising the legal marriage age in Utah and other states to 18. As he talked to the woman who lived there, Luke Brown came out of the house, and his brother Scott soon joined him. Paul Kingston and his wife, Mary Kelly, were natives of Moinies (Meenies) townland, Drimoleague, Co. Cork, Ireland. We strongly encourage all members to strictly adhere to every legal guideline when operating their businesses including day cares and when applying for all need-based assistance, including financial aid for students. Hansen said some men try to use their children to improve their status in the sect. Luke Brown now insists that he and his brother simply borrowed the silver, and planned to return it to their aunt later. His life was in danger, the voice on the other end warned. He charged across the field and started brutally beating Stephens cousin. This is an indication that an experienced qui tam firm looked at the facts, Markey said, and realized it was a case that was worth pursuing.. Luke and Scott often visited the home of one of their aunts, Rachel Young. By our latest survey, the majority of DCCS college students were not using government funded financial aid, including many who would qualify if they had applied. The two most recent of those marriages, according to wedding certificates, occurred in April. Back then, Paul Kingston stood around five feet ten and weighed close to 200 pounds. The couple have since divorced. The plaintiffs estimate 40 to 50 children from the sect were college age in each of the past six years. 180+ Jonathan Jacob Meijer View Site Google Maps (Paul W. Kingston, (Ph.D. Columbia University, 1980) is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the University of Virginia. He and Carl are members of the Utah State Bar, despite signing state oaths agreeing to uphold the Utah Constitution, which specifically outlaws polygamy. 1 choice. Theyll do what they need to do to defend whats theirs.. Still stunned at the sudden loss of their brother, Stephen and his siblings were numb with grief. If they are money-laundering or making money in support of polygamy and incest, then they probably meet the statute.. Death: January 25, 1867 (75-76) Immediate Family: Husband of Lydia Kingston. Rates of college attendance that meet or exceed the Utah average have been a point of pride in the Kingston Group, whose members have offered such statistics to counter the stereotype of children from polygamy, especially girls, being uneducated with no opportunity for self-improvement. But the more the deputy pressed, the more their stories didnt add up. 03/01/2023 9:00 a.m. Police divers cut a path through the ice to reach the victims. Mrs. Consumed with guilt over his brothers death, Stephen lashed out. The Kingstons operate in a self-contained universe, completely cut off from the outside world. From Hansens perspective, the entire Kingston Group marriage process is like being told you can have anything to eat as long as it comes from a certain table. (Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune) Bryan and Mary Nelson of South Jordan were informants for the federal government as they build a criminal case against Washakie Renewable Energy and their owners, Jacob and Isaiah Kingston. Stephen hangs up and drives home in silence. Earlier in its history, the Kingston Group had plural wives under age 18. They were finally getting even. But lots of people in the sect are already descended from that family, Hansen said; thats why there are so many cousin marriages in the Kingston Group. Paul already had two wives, but he and Richaun were married in a secret ceremony at her parents house. Regardless, all those applying should do so legally.. Then their father said something they never expected. Johnson did not provide the raw data to support those statistics. It alleges sex trafficking, sexual battery and child abuse, and seeks a jury trial and unspecified damages. She and her husband had four children with whom they share custody. During his tenure, some members have continued the practice of plural, and intra-family marriage,[3] although neither is practiced by the majority of members and the practice is not required to gain status in the group. She received no sex education or premarital counseling. While the sect is headquartered in Utah, members will travel to Colorado to wed because cousin marriages are legal there. As lore has it, Elden was the one mighty and strong predicted by Scripture, who holding the scepter of power in his hand would set in order the House of God. With thick white hair, a lantern jaw and a commanding presence, he had no problem attracting followers. Their legal team includes a Boston law firm with expertise in qui tam lawsuits. They had eight children whose baptisms are recorded in the same church. This article appears in the June 23, 2011 issue of Rolling Stone. Some former sect members, including two stars of the television show Escaping Polygamy," say girls are pressured to marry at the age most kids are learning to drive and reading Wuthering Heights.. One of the Orders leaders did jail time for severely beating his own daughter after she fled an arranged marriage to his brother. He became particularly obsessed with a plant called comfrey, which he believed would protect his clan from the nuclear war that would usher in the apocalypse. Four of those appear to be couples from polygamous groups. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. The plaintiffs estimate the eight combine to have 106 wives. Children born into the clan make up much of the labor force. No one would accept the guilty by association view in any other culture that has been adopted by the public for ours. According to Montana court documents, the couple had an argument at their apartment and DeRieuxs then-husband threw her down a flight of stairs. He finished a three-year term as Chair of the Department of Sociology in August 2007. She says marriages can be used in The Order to gain or maintain favor among the parents of the brides and grooms. The roof sagged, the carpet was worn, and the place reeked of cheap cologne. She was instructed, the complaint adds, to deposit the excess funds at a South Salt Lake office building, where the sects bank is located. If you would like the full family tree and I feel your request is legitimate I will email it to you. Stoddard was the president of the Latter Day Church of Christ, the Kingston Groups incorporated religious organization. I honestly didnt even know there was any gold until they accused me of taking it, he says. A few days later, the groom-to-be picked up Jessica and took her to Murray Park. While some despised Ben for his apostasy and refused to speak with him, Stephen had remained in touch with his brother. What he told me was, Hansen said, Get her married so we dont have to take care of her anymore.. I dont really have too many friends, but the ones I do, I wouldnt trade for anything., Among Stephens friends were two of his cousins, Luke and Scott Brown. Mrs. Jeanne Markey, a partner at the Philadelphia law firm of Cohen Milstein and co-chair of a group there that handles cases of whistleblowers reporting fraud against the government, reviewed the complaint at the request of The Tribune. Earlier in its history, the Kingston Group had plural wives under age 18. A body of research suggests the teenage brain is not developed enough to make the kind of long-term decision needed for marriage. Jessica Kingston said within a year of getting married, her husband started looking for a plural wife. Once the couples signed the certificates and turned them back in to the Mesa County clerk, they were legally married. One woman who was married in 2014 at age 16 said she did so for the same reason most people do: She fell in love. (Photo courtesy Shanell DeRieux) Shanell DeRieux, then called Shanell Snow, center, stands with her mother, Shirley Hansen, right, and her father, John Daniel Kingston, in this photo from her legal wedding day, July 3, 2008, in Grand Junction, Colo. Also pictured are DeRiux's now-ex-husband and ex-mother-in-law. Instead, he had walked away from the family three years earlier to make a life of his own. The lawsuit does not allege any wrongdoing by SLCC. The parents of the 16-year-olds also completed a form granting their permission. Jessicas father relented during the meeting and gave his approval for his daughter to marry her No. At a minimum, the statement said, two employees review every student file flagged for verification to ensure quality assurance in our processes.. Money, sex and power. Paul Valls's wife is Sharon Vallas. Short and chubby, the Brown boys looked up to the Knight brothers. Were fucked, they told their cousin. While his dad was running the order from Salt Lake City, Stephen grew up on a cattle ranch called Washakie, near the Idaho border. Only the inner circle knew the hoard even existed, says Christian Kingston, a former Order member. DeRieux says she was still high school age when her father told her she needed to pray about whom to marry, get married and build The Order. Her father also started calling her mother and prodded her to pressure DeRieux to get married. 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