Kingman, USA - An Arizona House bill, if passed, could impact the way incest crimes are handled, especially cases against Colorado City polygamists.
State House bill HB-2066 would add to the law making the charge of incest a Class 2 felony for anyone who has sex or marries a relative of full blood who is a minor under 15 years of age. The law also would make it a Class 3 felony for anyone to have sex or marry a relative who is a minor at least 15 years old. The proposed law would still make it a Class 4 felony if the incest victim is at least 18 years old.
The law was introduced by House Rep. David Lujan D-Phoenix, who said he introduced the bill primarily because of the dismissal of charges by Mohave County Superior Court Judge Steven Conn against Warren Steed Jeffs.
“We want to make sure that does not happen in future cases,” he said.
The bill was in part after Conn ruled in June 2008 to dismiss four counts of incest against Jeffs, the jailed leader of the polygamist sect in Colorado City. Conn ruled that the current law states both parties to an act of incest must be 18 years or older.
Mohave County Attorney Matt Smith argued as absurd that a man could be subjected to harsher penalties for having sex with a relative older than 18 compared to a girl younger than 18. Smith supports the proposed bill but believes Conn would have thrown out the four incest charges against Jeffs anyway because the victims were first cousins from half blood, not full blood. The current statute does not apply to first cousins of half blood.
Jeffs, 52, is still charged in two 2007 cases involving the two underage victims. He is charged with four counts of sexual conduct with a minor. Jeffs' defense attorney, Mike Piccarreta, also filed a motion this week for Smith to disclose audio and video recordings of Texas law enforcement officials who were involved in the April raid at the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints' compound in Eldorado, Texas.
Smith said his office is not in possession of the audio and video recordings but will try to obtain the recordings from Texas authorities.