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Sect Leader Convicted of Accessory to Rape

By Wade Goodwyn
Published September 26, 2007 at 5:00 AM CDT
Warren Jeffs looks over at the jury during his trial on Tuesday in St. George, Utah.
Douglas C. Pizac
/
Pool/Getty Images
Warren Jeffs looks over at the jury during his trial on Tuesday in St. George, Utah.

The leader of the polygamous Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints was found guilty Tuesday of being an accessory to rape when he forced a 14-year-old follower to marry her 19-year-old cousin.

Prosecutors had maintained that Warren Jeffs, 51, used his religious authority to compel the girl into marriage and sex against her will.

He could receive up to life in prison when he is sentenced on Nov. 20 in St. George, Utah.

Copyright 2023 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

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Wade Goodwyn
Wade Goodwyn is an NPR National Desk Correspondent covering Texas and the surrounding states.
See stories by Wade Goodwyn
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