Men rise in prominence by being obedient and pure of blood and by having large families that can produce a lot of money and workers for the group, the suit continues. Tennessee Ex-Cop Sues After Becoming Porn Meme, Claims She Was 'Groomed' for Sex With Coworkers Then one night, a clan member called and told him that the Order planned to kill him. While his dad was running the order from Salt Lake City, Stephen grew up on a cattle ranch called Washakie, near the Idaho border. He trained the women how to rip off the government, a scheme the Order called Bleeding the Beast. Among those Kingston Group brides who marry as minors and for whom The Tribune was able to find birthdates, the average age was 16 years, 7 months and 12 days. Girls, many of them teen brides, answer phones at the Orders law office, bag groceries at its supermarket or tend to the clans many children. The theft of the silver bars from Rachel Youngs basement, they concluded, had been a copycat crime. This is nothing more than a continued attempt in a long history to keep DCCS members from accessing education and services every other U.S. citizen is legally entitled to. These days Stephen works on a cattle ranch near the Idaho border, just down the road from where he grew up. If they are money-laundering or making money in support of polygamy and incest, then they probably meet the statute.. Only the inner circle knew the hoard even existed, says Christian Kingston, a former Order member. Theyd keep it in basements, in filing cabinets, in a big safe in one of Pauls offices, says Levi Kingston, a former clan member. Murdaugh is accused of fatally shooting his son, Paul, 22, with a shotgun and his wife, Maggie, 52, with a rifle near the dog kennels at the family's hunting estate known as Moselle. (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. A sheriffs deputy traced the license plate of the Honda to a run-down house in a working-class suburb south of the city. Their grooms were 22. The jury in Alex Murdaugh's high-profile murder trial will visit the scene where his wife Maggie and son Paul were brutally murdered, before they decide the disgraced legal scion's fate.. Instead, she volunteered for extra shifts at the Kingston Group-run coal mine near Huntington, where she worked as a dispatcher. On February 26th, 2009, the Salt Lake County Sheriffs Office got a call of suspicious activity in the foothills above the city. A copy of the lawsuit also is available there, though no other filings in the case are. They would trek into state welfare offices, their kids in tow, claiming that they had no idea who the father of their children was, or that he was a truck driver who had left them destitute. had some 80 children by 13 wives, but his favorite was Paul, an excellent student who made friends easily. Children born into the clan make up much of the labor force. Alex's wife and son, Maggie and Paul, were shot to death at their home in 2021, and Alex is currently on trial for their murders.. Or wed set traps and raise them as pets., In many ways it was an idyllic childhood, except for the fact that the ranch also doubled as a work camp for disobedient clan wives and rebellious kids. In a search of public records created since the start of 1997, The Salt Lake Tribune found 65 marriages among members of the Kingston Group in which the bride was 15, 16 or 17. 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?. After the lawsuit was filed, attorneys representing the U.S. government asked a judge to seal the case, according to entries that can still be found on a webpage maintained by DocketBird.com, a commercial site that collects and sells court records. . Jessica saw the list. The suitor had asked her to dance a few times at The Orders youth social events. Paul married Frances G Chez Kingston. I knew I wasn't supposed to marry him, she said, but I almost did to get everyone to shut up and leave me alone about marriage.. sltrib.com 1996-2023 The Salt Lake Tribune. In the meantime, the police were closing in on the missing silver. Ive lived a good life. Sometimes, lying in bed at night, he thinks of his brother who died not far from here, and the rest of his siblings who remain in the Order. Regardless, all those applying should do so legally. Their divorce was finalized in July 2012 a little more than three years after they married. Stephen calmly waited until his uncle got close, and then he reached behind the seat and pulled out a shotgun, leveling it at his uncle. If you were more obedient, this wouldnt have happened., After that, everything changed, Stephen says. The suit was filed against the groups leader Paul Eldon Kingston and 21 other members. Carolyn Yvonne Kingston was born in 1938 in Elmo, Utah, to Charles Elden Kingston, and his first wife Ethel Gustafson, so she was the daughter of the first prophet of the Kingston Clan. She received no sex education or premarital counseling. Thats your Uncle Paul, she said. But Jessicas No. DeRieux did marry the next year at age 18 to a cousin who was 19. While the Kingston Group, founded in 1935, is not affilated with the FLDS, members practice a fundamentalist version of Mormonism that involves polygamy. If the case succeeds, the whistleblowers can collect perhaps millions of dollars from the damages or fines paid by the defendants. The Order was founded by Elden Kingston, Stephens grand-uncle, at the height of the Great Depression. By 18 she was pregnant with her first child and ended up having four children in four years. The doorknob to her room was removed. A lawyer and an accountant by trade, Stephens father hardly looked like the sort of man who could command the unquestioned loyalty of thousands of followers. At a minimum, the statement said, two employees review every student file flagged for verification to ensure quality assurance in our processes.. That wasnt the only reason Jessica liked him. The marriages, former followers say, can be used as a tool to keep girls in the Kingston Group, known among younger members as The Order. For their part, the brides sometimes see legal marriages as a way to avoid becoming polygamists later (and consequently being matched with a husband perhaps twice their age) or a means to escape their parents crowded households. Kent Johnson, a spokesman for the Davis County Cooperative Society (DCCS), which also is named as a defendant, said members are strongly encouraged to strictly adhere to every legal guideline when applying for financial aid. Youre just supposed to get married as young as you can, said the now-26-year-old. 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. Once the couples signed the certificates and turned them back in to the Mesa County clerk, they were legally married. I could tell she loved him, and it seemed like he loved her too. Within a year, Paul Kingston would take a fourth wife. He was angry and confused, says a former member of the cult. By 18, she was pregnant with her first child and ended up having four children in four years. The Brown boys, charged with felony counts of burglary, wrote a letter to their aunt apologizing for stealing the silver in her house. Some former teenage Kingston Group brides acknowledge they werent forced to marry; they made a choice. She's since left the marriage and wants the legal marriage age raised to 18. It is a common and intentional practice in the Order to require girls and women to submit sexually to their husbands even if the sexual submission is against their will because having children results in workers for the benefit of the Order, the lawsuit states. But because they were the sons of the prophet, they got away with it., Stephen vehemently denies that he or his brothers had anything to do with the heist. That includes the fraud within Washakie Renewable Energy as well as what the plaintiffs allege was a separate scheme by sect members to bilk a U.S. Department of Agriculture program to provide free lunches to child and adult day cares. Directories Newly added. A few days later, the groom-to-be picked up Jessica and took her to Murray Park. But 16- and 17-year-olds in Utah need only the consent of a parent to wed. Idaho, Colorado and Nevada, where the The Tribune also found Kingston Group marriages, have similar age and parental-consent requirements. The lawsuit was filed May 24 in Salt Lake Citys federal court by Mary and Bryan Nelson. According to former Order members, they worked long shifts sorting coal and operating heavy machinery in unsafe conditions. Paul Kingston and his wife, Mary Kelly, were natives of Moinies (Meenies) townland, Drimoleague, Co. Cork, Ireland. Managed by: A state court website says the judge must conclude that the marriage is voluntary and in the best interests of the minor.. Over 75 years, the Kingstons have amassed a fortune worth an estimated $300 million, but the operation skirts the edges of the law. They believe were Gods chosen people, Snow said of the Kingston Group followers, so you should start having kids as soon as possible.. He then pinned her on a bed, the documents say, and wouldnt let her call for help. The group has drawn legal attention before. Trump Melts Down Over Murdoch Admitting Fox Lied About Election Fraud But it is likely that Kingston could recognize some of himself in Stephen. Father of Avisa Kingston; Susannah Mary Allison; Samuel Kingston and Paul Kingston. Stephen hangs up and drives home in silence. Eventually, Stephen was sent back to Washakie and was placed under the supervision of his uncle, one of the familys most feared enforcers. By the time he was 30, he would have more than 10. Members of The Order are taught they need to be in a plural marriage to reach the highest heaven. Their grooms averaged 20 years and 18 days. [4], Plural marriage is practiced by some members of the DCCS, and members make their own choice in who they marry. Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) Jurors in Alex Murdaugh's murder trial will get to see for themselves the rural hunting estate where his wife and son were killed, following in the footsteps of . By our latest survey, his statement said, the majority of DCCS college students were not using government-funded financial aid, including many who would qualify if they had applied. They both have the same high cheekbones, the same pale skin, the same wide-set eyes. (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. He even had charts showing who were the higher families in the sect so his daughters knew where to look for a mate. A lawsuit alleges leaders of a Utah polygamous sect bilked federal student aid programs by instructing teenagers to omit their fathers and other sources of income when applying for benefits. 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. All Rights reserved. ), Related One day, for laughs, he and his half brother Ron Tucker stole some napalm from an Order army-supply store, drew lines of it in the street and lit it on fire as cars drove by. Johnson said the Davis County Cooperative Society takes no position on the issue. One of them, Stephen Knight, made for the most unlikely of suspects. Yet its teen marriages in the Kingston Group that spurred the Utah Legislature to act this year. 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. Donate to the newsroom now. The memorial was held in Maxwell Park in Hildale, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2015. We were off on our own out there and really close, Stephen says. Brother Ron Tucker, he would intone, come and get your number. According to the Orders interpretation of the Book of Revelations, only 144,000 numbered men will be allowed to rule in heaven under God. Jessica suspects her dad was pushing her toward another man. The relations are distant enough they wouldnt encounter any of Utahs prohibitions on marriage between siblings, first cousins or aunts/nephews and uncles/nieces. 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. Four of those appear to be couples from polygamous groups. Comparable graduation rates have been attained by our bachelors and advanced degree students when compared to the state of Utah and the U.S., despite an uphill battle of active discrimination against our students. Over the next several years, Stephen bounced from the suburbs of Salt Lake to the clans ranch in Nevada. A young child is also one of the accusers in the suit with allegations the child was raped by his or her father, who allegedly raped the mother. The other seven are brothers or sons of Paul Kingston. It was just the best choice, some say, among their bad options. Consumed with guilt over his brothers death, Stephen lashed out. The Kingston Group is not affiliated withthe Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS) based on the Utah-Arizona line that is run by imprisoned leader Warren Jeffs, who is serving a life sentence in Texas for sexually assaulting girls he considered brides. [9], Records show he signed as a witness on 4 lawful teenage marriages over a 20 year period. If you messed with one of them, you were messing with them all., When Stephen was nine, an accident at Washakie set in motion a chain of events that would eventually prompt him to leave the cult. Jessica Kingston didnt want to be a polygamist. Jessica Kingston said within a year of getting married, her husband started looking for a plural wife. Christopher Cherrington | The Salt Lake Tribune. Situated at the base of a rugged mountain range, the Orders spread sat in a pristine valley of glistening hayfields and open pasture. Contact. I strongly believe they are an organized-crime family, Shurtleff says. It would be several more years before Stephen learned that Paul Kingston was his father, and that his mother was just one of his dads many wives. Paul Kingston is one of eight men named as defendants in the lawsuit. Kingston taught his followers that they are the literal descendants of Jesus and one of his wives, who had come down to Earth to found a race of chosen people. He also preached a bizarre extrapolation of the Book of Mormon called the White Horse Prophecy, a dreaded prediction of a cataclysmic time when the black race will rise up and attempt to destroy the white man, only to be thwarted by Native Americans riding to the rescue. A nationwide debate is underway about teens, especially girls, marrying. He finished a three-year term as Chair of the Department of Sociology in August 2007. Some people say they funneled the money through Mexico. They did it, says Christian Kingston. 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