Two towns of polygamist sect violated the constitutional rights of nonbeliever residents of the town by not providing them basic services and the church security harassment to them. The jury discovered that the towns denied non-FLDS members with police protection, building permits and water hookups.
Federal jury ruled on Monday that the polygamous town on Colorado City in Arizona and Hildale in Utah run by the members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints guilty of the said violation, the Guardian reported.
During the announcement of the verdict on U.S. District Court in Phoenix, awarded $2.2m to six residents eligible for damages, NPR reported. However, the said towns will only pay $1.6m as defense lawyers negotiated a settlement over that part of the case.
Judge will also decide regarding the punishment to impose for the violations, according to Havasunews. Representing lawyer for the town, Jeffrey Matura said during the hearing, the towns deny the allegations, saying the federal government is persecuting town officials because it disapproves of their religion.
The town's legal team also said the case could leave other religions open to similar attacks in court. They urged the jurors to give the town punishments for the actions of imprisoned leader Warren Jeffs.
Throughout the hearing proceedings, jurors heard testimonies regarding the church security and the newcomers' accusation of harassment from them. According to the newcomers, who were nonbelievers, the church security spied on them with cameras. These cameras are placed around the towns and positioned themselves to keep an eye on who was arriving.
The polygamous sect is also not an affiliation with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the formal name of the Mormon Church. The said church renounced polygamy in 1890, however, in 1930s, "plural marriages" is still practice. The trial also marks one of boldest efforts by the US government to confront of what they described as a corrupt regime in the neighboring communities.
