Polygamy: Major Crime or Big Waste of Time?

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a relatively new religion founded by Joseph Smith. One of the principles of originally was the practice of plural marriage, or Polygamy. Today polygamy is condemned by most of America, but not by all.

Joseph Smith, the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints once said that he received a message from God that polygamy was one of the most important factors to entering the Kingdom of Heaven. Today, there are still some Mormon fundamentalists who follow these beliefs despite the fact that it is illegal. In a recent article published on Reuters.com, a family living in Centennial Park, Arizona openly admitted to participating in the practice of Polygamy. Centennial Park, a small town located on the Utah/Arizona border, is run by polygamists. These people have been ex-communicated by their church, but they still feel as they they are the true believers in Mormonism, as this was the word of their founder Joseph Smith. Law enforcement officials are aware of the town and the practices of its residents, yet they are reluctant to act on it. Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard has been quoted as saying "We are not going to go out there and persecute people for their beliefs." Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff also had this to say about the polygamists:

We determined six or seven years ago that there was no way we could prosecute 10,000 polygamists and put the kids into foster care. There's no way that we have the money or the resources to do that.

The consensus opinion amongst law enforcement officials is that if no harm is being done, they will not step in. In the case of Warren Jeffs, the polygamist leader who not only arranged marriages between adults and minors but is also suspected of having sexual relations with a minor, they had to intervene, but for the most part, they recognize that these people are not harming anyone. The feeling is that it would be wrong to raid these towns and break up these families.