Tue 13 Jul 99 11:12
Don Martin
Christian Family Values

A tidbit from Reuters today:

Man Sentenced For Forced Marriage To Niece

SALT LAKE CITY (Reuters) - A man who took his underage niece as his 15th wife was sentenced Friday to up to 10 years in prison, prosecutors said.

David Ortell Kingston, 33, was convicted in June by a jury of incest and unlawful sexual conduct with his niece, now aged 17. She testified she was forced in 1997 by her father and uncle to become the uncle's 15th wife.

Kingston, who has been in custody, was sentenced to up to five years for each count to run consecutively, Richard Shepherd of the Salt Lake County district attorney's office, said.

The case came to light after the teen-ager contacted police to tell them she had run away from her uncle and had been beaten by her father, John Kingston.

Polygamous marriages were a cornerstone of the Mormon Church when its members, fleeing religious persecution, settled in Utah.

But the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, as the church is formally known, renounced polygamous marriages in 1890 as a condition to the territory becoming a U.S. state.

Although polygamy has been outlawed some people still practice it. However, the Mormon Church excommunicates members who engage in the practice.

The marriage between Kingston and his niece was conducted in secret with the girl's father officiating.

The girl, who has not been identified, told officials the Kingston clan was a group of polygamists composed of mostly family members. None is a member of the Mormon church.

Prosecutors said the case was not based on polygamy, but on child abuse.

... Through a Jaundiced Eye Darkly--Rheum With a View
(don@vard.org www.vard.org)

--- Blue Wave/386 v2.20
* Origin: Nerve Center - Where the spine is misaligned! (1:261/1000)