Current:Home > reviewsGuilty plea by leader of polygamous sect near the Arizona-Utah border is at risk of being thrown out -PrimeWealth Guides
Guilty plea by leader of polygamous sect near the Arizona-Utah border is at risk of being thrown out
View
Date:2025-04-13 21:53:25
PHOENIX (AP) — A guilty plea by the leader of an offshoot polygamous sect near the Arizona-Utah border is at risk of being thrown out due to an unmet condition of his deal that hinged on whether others charged in the case also would plead guilty.
Under the terms of Samuel Bateman’s deal, prosecutors can — but aren’t required to — withdraw his guilty plea, after two other men charged in the case rejected plea offers and are now headed to trial.
Bateman, a self-proclaimed prophet who took more than 20 wives, including 10 girls under age 18, pleaded guilty this month to charges of kidnapping and conspiring to transport underage girls across state lines in what authorities say was a yearslong scheme to orchestrate sexual acts involving children.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Phoenix declined on Friday to say whether it will withdraw Bateman’s plea.
“We have yet to see it. It’s not on the docket,” Bateman’s attorney, Myles Schneider, said when asked about the matter. He declined to comment further.
Hearings are scheduled Monday and Tuesday before U.S. District Judge Susan Brnovich over the offers that were rejected by Bateman’s co-defendants.
Bateman’s plea agreement recommends a prison sentence of 20 to 50 years, though one of his convictions carries a possible maximum sentence of life.
In his plea, Bateman, 48, acknowledged taking underage brides, having sex activity with them and arranging group sex, sometimes involving child brides.
Authorities say Bateman created a sprawling network spanning at least four states as he tried to start an offshoot of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, which historically has been based in the neighboring communities of Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah.
He and his followers practice polygamy, a legacy of the early teachings of the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which abandoned the practice in 1890 and now strictly prohibits it. Bateman and his followers believe polygamy brings exaltation in heaven.
veryGood! (5292)
Related
- Bill Belichick's salary at North Carolina: School releases football coach's contract details
- Caitlin Clark's spectacular run comes to a close. Now, she'll take time to reflect
- Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan's divorce nears an end after 6 years
- Horoscopes Today, September 25, 2024
- Louvre will undergo expansion and restoration project, Macron says
- Horoscopes Today, September 25, 2024
- I Won't Do My Laundry Without These Amazon Essentials Starting at $6
- Browns QB Deshaun Watson won't ask for designed runs: 'I'm not a running back'
- Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow owns a $3 million Batmobile Tumbler
- A Black student punished for his hairstyle wants to return to the Texas school he left
Ranking
- B.A. Parker is learning the banjo
- When do new 'Grey's Anatomy' episodes come out? Season 21 premiere date, time, cast, where to watch
- MLB blows up NL playoff race by postponing Mets vs. Braves series due to Hurricane Helene
- Channing Tatum and Jenna Dewan Settle Divorce 6 Years After Breakup
- Justice Department, Louisville reach deal after probe prompted by Breonna Taylor killing
- The great supermarket souring: Why Americans are mad at grocery stores
- UFC reaches $375 million settlement on one class-action lawsuit, another one remains pending
- Utah Supreme Court to decide viability of a ballot question deemed ‘counterfactual’ by lower court
Recommendation
Federal hiring is about to get the Trump treatment
How Rooted Books in Nebraska is combatting book bans: 'We really, really care'
When do new 'Grey's Anatomy' episodes come out? Season 21 premiere date, time, cast, where to watch
Browns QB Deshaun Watson won't ask for designed runs: 'I'm not a running back'
All That You Wanted to Know About She’s All That
Who went home on Episode 2 of 'Survivor' Season 47? See the player who was voted out
5 women, 1 man shot during Los Angeles drive-by shooting; 3 suspects at large
Tropical Weather Latest: Hurricane Helene is upgraded to Category 2 as it heads toward Florida