Utah State Legislature to hold hearing investigating whether Shurtleff acted improperly in not arresting Dan Fischer

There is sworn evidence that Dan Fischer committed child abuse, child abandonment, theft, and lied under oath. Further, Fischer himself confirmed that he was abusive in newspaper reports. Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff has said he will prosecute crimes related to polygamy. However, Shurtleff has let Fischer off the hook, despite sworn evidence that Fischer has committed felonies.

Normally, this would be considered lax enforcement, at the evidence was presented to a congressional panel. However, Shurtleff has political connections with Fischer. Remember how Shurtleff admitted that inappropriate underage drinking went on at Fischer's "lost boy" parties, but excused the violation? How much has Fischer directly or indirectly contributed to Shurtleff's campaigns? What are the connections between lack of enforcement and political support?

This is clearly a matter for the Utah State Legislature to investigate. I would encourage all citizens of Utah to write your legislator, and call both Shurtleff and Fishcer to account for their deeds. Also, those of you in Salt Lake need to organize a protest around his dental practice. Signs like "Dan Fischer is a child molester," "Dan Fischer steals from his own children," and "Dan Fischer is a fraudster" would be appropriate and accurate. Fischer has done the crime, now he needs to do the time.

I have also thought the FBI should be investigating whether there is political favoritism by the Utah State attorney general's office in prosecuting FLDS but not anti-FLDS figures. Why was Jeffs convicted on flimsey charges, but not Fischer on solid, sworn evidence?

Letter to Arizona Attorney General, Terry Goddard

On the Arizona Attorney General site, there is a link for the civil rights division: civilrightsinfo@azag.gov . There is also a link to a civil rights complaint form. I wrote the following letter to the Civil Rights division. I would encourage polygamists in Arizona to file a civil rights complaint form, demanding that Goddard stop his hate speech.

I would like to report hate speech. The Attorney General himself, Terry Goddard, has engaged in hate speech toward the FLDS. Not only has he participated in exagerrated claims of lawlessness and abuse, but he has granted the bully pulpit to others that have used it to promote outright lies and advertise their books. Such behavior is truly reprehensible.

It has been reported that Mr. Goddard has been invited as a witness to a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on the purported crimes of the FLDS in the coming weeks. However, it is also reported that not a single representative of the FLDS has been called to testify, though a number of proven slanderers and profiteers will testify. The current makeup of this hearing amounts to nothing more than federally sanctioned hate speech. Mr. Goddard would not be representing Arizona, or defending the constitution by attending. As a citizen of Arizona, I demand that he recuse himself from attending, or recuse himself from being attorney general. His continued religious persecution should not be allowed to continue.

Possible (or Probable) Source for Sarah Story

Here is an "example incident" from the The Primer: Helping Victims of Domestic Violence and Child Abuse in Polygamous Communities. This is the June 2006 edition - plenty of time for Rozita to plan her attack.

Look at "incident #3" on page 50:

3. A 16-year-old girl, Sarah, has run away from her fundamentalist community and contacted authorities, alleging physical abuse by her polygamous father and claiming that her father had just told her she was to become the second wife of a fellow member of the community. She has 23 siblings and her older sister was married at 16 and now lives in Canada. There is no physical evidence of abuse, but Sarah’s story is very compelling. She begs authorities not to return her to her parents. What is the potential impact of returning or not returning on Sarah?

Does any of that seem to line up with the "Sarah" calls? It seems to me that Rozita used the primer to develop her story. Which also means that the Attorney Generals for Utah and Arizona should have picked up on the hoax call hate crime much earlier -- after all, they were responsible for the writing of the primer.

On the same page is an exercise that Texas should have finished before starting the raid:

Ask participants to brainstorm stereotypes associated with fundamentalist groups
Ask participants to list characteristics that they have seen or heard attributed to women and men from fundamentalist groups
Ask participants to cite sources of these stereotypes (ie, the media)
Discuss what information they have acquired that counters these stereotypes

Perhaps they would not have been so eager to violate the constitution if they knew more about the FLDS than "what was preached in the cult awareness seminar at my church."

Letter to Governor and Attorney General about Hate Crimes

I wrote these letters in response to remind our elected officials that many hate crimes have come from these raids, and that false reporting is a serious matter that needs to be attacked.

Subject: Hate Crimes in the wake of the FLDS raid

As a citizen of Arizona I have been concerned with a possible pattern of hate crimes. As you know, the FLDS compound in Eldorado, Texas was raided around a month ago, and much slander and false rumor has been circulated in press reports. Perhaps as a result, Mormons of all kinds in Texas have been targeted for hate crimes – LDS missionaries being threatened with weapons, LDS homeowners having their home vandalized, and anti-Mormon graffiti. Unfortunately, some of the same type of thing has been happening in Arizona, as an LDS missionary in Mesa was beaten up the day after the Eldorado raid.

Recently, a potential anti-Mormon hate crime also occurred in Tucson. The Binghampton Chapel was the first LDS chapel in Tucson, and has become a local icon. Recently, glass doors and windows were smashed in this historical building. The state should investigate this vandalism as a possible hate crime, given the recent prevalence of anti-Mormon sentiment.

Secondly, I would like to address another hate crime – that of false reporting. Just as the calls that sparked the Eldorado raid came from a false-reporting hate crime, the media reported that the State of Arizona received similar calls, and have received multiple such calls this year. I am wondering what is being done to prosecute these callers, and bring them to justice? For example, the penalties for setting off a fire alarm are very strict. However, calls such as these can deny parental rights without any due process, trial, or actual crime. Given the huge damage that can be inflicted by these calls, the state should aggressively prosecute and penalize hoax callers who do so with criminal and hateful intent. Perhaps Rozita Swinton would never have had the chance to destroy a community had Arizona treated false reporting with the seriousness it deserves.

In conclusion, I would like the Tucson vandalism to be investigated as a possible hate crime. I would also like to see the fraudulent phone calls that have already happened in Arizona to be prosecuted.

Sincerely,
xxxx