Utah judge rejects polygamous church trust settlement proposal

September 23rd, 2009 Utah Supreme Court moves sect leader's hearingSALT LAKE CITY — A hearing on an appeal of the 2007 criminal conviction of polygamous church leader Warren Jeffs has been moved to a larger venue to make room for his family and members of his church. Utah State Courts spokeswoman Nancy Volmer says the Utah Supreme Court will hear arguments at 11 a.m.

September 4th, 2009 Company: Utah in talks for nuclear waste dealSALT LAKE CITY — EnergySolutions Inc. said Friday it is in settlement talks with Utah aimed at getting the state to drop its objections to importing foreign nuclear waste for disposal in the state.

August 24th, 2009 Utah judge orders sale of polygamous sect's landSALT LAKE CITY — A Utah judge has ordered the sale of a 400-acre parcel of land that is part of a trust established by followers of jailed polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs. In a ruling issued Monday, 3rd District Court Judge Denise Lindberg says a liquidity crisis of the United Effort Plan Trust makes the sale of Berry Knoll necessary.

August 20th, 2009 Nutraceutical board rejects takeover offerPARK CITY, Utah — Nutritional supplement maker Nutraceutical International Corp. said Thursday its board has decided an unsolicited takeover proposal from Ryan Drexler is not in the best interest of shareholders.

August 14th, 2009 Utah sect member asks for rape charge dismissalSALT LAKE CITY — An attorney asked a judge Thursday to dismiss a rape charge filed against a man whose 2001 spiritual marriage led to the criminal conviction of Utah polygamous church leader Warren Jeffs. Allen Steed was charged with rape by Washington County prosecutors in September 2007 — one day after a jury found Jeffs guilty of two counts of rape as an accomplice for his role in Steed's marriage to Elissa Wall.

August 13th, 2009 Pa. 'music church' barred from holding concertsPITTSBURGH — A federal judge says a southwestern Pennsylvania church that claims "jam band" concerts are its services cannot hold four planned concerts this summer. U.S. District Judge Donetta Ambrose found that evidence of pervasive drug use at a concert on Aug.

August 11th, 2009 AZ jail: Polygamous church leader off feeding tubeSALT LAKE CITY —Arizona jail officials say polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs is eating normally and no longer needs to be force-fed through a tube. Mohave County sheriff's spokeswoman Trish Carter says a feeding tube that had provided Jeffs with liquid nutrition for about a week was removed Friday.

August 4th, 2009 Arizona jail force-feeding sect leader JeffsBEAVER, Utah — A letter from a doctor says polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs is being force-fed in an Arizona jail to prevent the possibility of "imminent death." In a letter filed with the Mohave County Superior Court on Monday, county jail Medical Director Kirsten Mortenson told a judge that Jeffs has been refusing to eat and is no longer urinating. She says Jeffs's vital signs are worsening and he is suffering from malnutrition.

July 29th, 2009 Holy car! Utah boy goes for spin to avoid churchPLAIN CITY, Utah — Police in Utah say a 7-year-old boy led officers on a car chase in an effort to avoid going to church. Dispatchers received reports of a child driving recklessly on Sunday morning.

July 29th, 2009 Utah boy, 7, goes for spin to avoid churchPLAIN CITY, Utah — Police say a 7-year-old boy led officers on a car chase Sunday through Weber County in an effort to avoid going to church. Dispatchers received reports of a child driving recklessly on Sunday morning and Weber County Sheriff's Capt.

June 17th, 2009 Polygamous church trust manager pleads not guiltySALT LAKE CITY — A court-appointed fiduciary of a polygamous church trust has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor trespassing and other charges related to his management operations. Bruce R. Wisan was charged in Mocassin, Ariz.

May 13th, 2009 BP Prudhoe Bay enters $29.5M settlement dealNEW YORK — BP Prudhoe Bay Royalty Trust said Tuesday it entered into a $29.5 million settlement agreement with BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc., a unit of British oil company BP PLC. BP Exploration will pay the $29.5 million to the trust.

April 30th, 2009 Some fear eviction in polygamous sect's land fightSALT LAKE CITY — Some former members of a polygamous sect on the Utah-Arizona line are worried they will lose their homes in the legal wrangling for control of the church's property trust. Residents no longer connected to the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints say they fear that settlement talks may lead to members of the church winning control of the land and homes in the twin towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz.

April 23rd, 2009 Talks upbeat on polygamous sect's property trustSALT LAKE CITY — Settlement talks in a yearslong battle for control of a polygamous church's property trust ended upbeat Wednesday evening with all sides talking and trying to work out disagreements, the mediator said. "I feel like progress has been made today and I hope more can be made tomorrow," said the mediator, University of Utah professor Paul Cassell.

April 23rd, 2009 Talks start on polygamous sect's property trustSALT LAKE CITY — Negotiations are under way in a yearslong battle for control of a polygamous church property trust seized by the Utah courts in 2005 after allegations of mismanagement. At stake are the assets of the United Effort Plan Trust, an arm of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.