Colorado City Press Conference

From the Mohave County Supervisor MohaveCountyNews.com

The following is the speech given by Ross Chatwin on January 23, 2004 after being excommunicated from the FLDS Church two weeks ago. "I just want to get the ball rolling and to help pave the road for others to add to. Almost all the families in the society are really good and hard working people. They are just taught (brainwashed) from infancy to just trust, believe, follow like sheep and not to ask questions. If we don't understand something than we were told just put it on the shelf of beliefs. Well, I'm tired of being kept ignorant and my shelf was so stacked up it broke. We need your help to stop Warren S. Jeffs from destroying families, kicking us out of our homes, and marrying our children into some kind of political dollar browny point system. This Hitler like dictator has got to be stopped before he ruins us all and this beautiful town. Recently, I joined a growing list of men who have been told to leave their homes. I can't be sure as to why I've been told to leave behind everything that I've worked for. I do know, however, that the owner of the UEP land trust, Warren Jeffs, has claimed to be receiving revelations on whom to evict. Typically he requires that the person in question quietly vacate their home and leave their family under the auspices that if they show complete humility he may restore to them what was lost. As part of the process, he requires the evictee to write a letter listing all of their sins. He says that if the list of sins does not match the list of sins that God gave him through revelation then their eviction becomes permanent. This is essentially the ultimatum that was given to me and it is the same ultimatum that was given to former Mayor Dan Barlow and his brothers along with approximately 20 other men. Although there are rumors of secret meetings and general unrest within the Barlow group, it would appear that some of the Barlow brothers are attempting to fulfill Jeffs' demand. My sources tell me that they have in fact vacated their homes and have left their families behind. It is now up to Jeffs to decide whether they will be allowed to return and be reunited with their families. In regard to my situation, my list of sins obviously did not match up with the list of sins Jeffs put together. James Zitting, a member within the FLDS organization, came to my home on Wednesday the 14th and told me that he was sent to deliver a message as a trustee of the UEP. He then told me to leave my home immediately. James said that he was doing what he was sent to do and that he wasn't there to philosophize or to listen to me. At the conclusion of the meeting I told him that I knew what I had to do. He answered "Good, so lets get doing it." I want James Zitting to know that what I have to do is stand up to Warren Jeffs and to the UEP. My family and I do not plan on leaving our home anytime soon. I am pleased to report that my wife has committed to stay by my side regardless of Jeffs commandment to leave me. It was ultimately her choice to preserve our family. It is difficult for me to find the words that can express to her how much I appreciate her. Lori, thank you, for enabling me to continue being a full-time father to our beautiful children. Thank you for showing me that my best friend has, all along, been right beside me. Naturally, my predicament has afforded me a reason to research into what some of my rights are. After studying some of the previous lawsuits brought against UEP I've found that I was fairly ignorant as to what my options were. I'm concerned, also, that people living under the shadow of the UEP are unaware as well. One of the messages I want to leave with people of Colorado City is that they don't have to leave if they don't want to. I've come to realize that a few men stood up to the UEP and paved the way for a better life for us all. Only now do I fully appreciate the many people who made the "Stubbs vs. UEP" court case a reality. Only now do I appreciate the labor that it took to see it through to fruition. Thank you for giving us hope in a most desperate hour. Please note that the following statements are my personal interpretation of research that I have conducted. My research shows that the Utah courts through the case of "Stubbs vs. UEP" set a precedence that establishes several important things. Most important is the ruling that essentially says the UEP shall not remove people from its land unless these people are compensated fair value for their homes. While there are some restrictions on whom this ruling applies to, I believe that it was demonstrated recently in an Arizona court through the case of "Holms vs. Colorado City" that the precedence set by the Utah court will most likely hold for anymore fitting the criterion. It might be helpful in understanding the court's decision if you realize that the majority of the land in Colorado City is held in a private trust called the UEP and that its owner, to my understanding, is Jeffs who also happens to be the self-proclaimed prophet of the FLDS church. While Jeffs is the current owner of the UEP, he by no means built it. The people living under the UEP originally owned the land and entrusted it to the UEP. The people also provide all the money that goes into maintaining and expanding the UEP. I believe that the UEP has been valued as high as 100 million dollars. The young men of the FLDS church are taught that if they want advancement in the organization they must build a home upon UEP land. It's quite an exciting time for a young man. He knuckles down and puts everything he has into building his home all the while anticipating the possibility of marriage and of getting to start a family. When I was young, impressionable, a little ignorant, and maybe even a little overly zealous I wanted more than anything to build a home. As all marriages within the FLDS organization are assigned, I felt that building a home would give me the opportunity to be married. The excitement I felt as a 17 year old boy at receiving a building lot from the UEP can only be matched by the dread of finally realizing the UEP might be used as an instrument to forcibly take my home from me. The premise behind the Utah court's decision was based on the concept of "unjust enrichment". It is my understanding that the court felt that it would be unfair to remove these people from homes they built without at least giving them the means to start somewhere else. Lately, Jeffs has been moving people around on UEP land. Many men have been told to move from a house they built into another house. It is conceivable that this might make it difficult for an individual to be defined as the owner of the home in question under the "Stubbs vs. UEP" court case. I believe, that the spirit of the ruling holds, in that the UEP would still be benefiting by unjust enrichment. From my perspective, it is easy to see how the courts might interpret this the same way. If the UEP should try to evict you, I would recommend that you resist leaving your home. The UEP has been known to send out notices asking that people move. I suggest that you ignore these notices. And, if you do for some reason receive a court ordered eviction, I would encourage you to challenge the motion as quickly as possible. Also, as I understand it, there is a stipulation in the court's ruling that you should be aware of. It says that if you leave your home for more than 30 days, your home reverts back to the UEP. While the possibility of losing your home is frustrating, the real travesty in Colorado City is the possibility of losing your family. The second message I would like to leave with the people of Colorado City is to not let some whimsical notion be the reason you break up your family. It's not fair to you and it's especially not fair to your children. I've talked with individuals who, being stunned by the magnitude of the situation, allowed Jeffs to remove their families from them. They now deeply regret having allowed this to happen. With all my heart I beg you to plan for the possibility that Jeffs' next revelation might be about you. Don't be caught off guard. Talk with your families. Commit to stay together. Do it for the love you have for one another. Do it for the love you have for your children. Houses can ultimately be rebuilt but once a family is destroyed it leaves broken hearts that can never be healed. Please, give it some thought before you throw it all away. Colorado City has the reputation of housing society. And for the most part, this is true. As a member, I felt very uncomfortable discussing the inner workings of the society. I've come to realize, however, that this secrecy is not good for the society. It creates a tense environment and a suspicious people. There are few systems of checks and balances to govern how Jeffs operates. One of the only ways we can affect what he is doing is by letting the world know about the things that go on inside this town. In this way, pressure from the outside world restricts to a degree what he can do. For these reasons, I feel that it would be helpful to inform the public about some of the organizational changes Jeffs has been making within the FLDS church. It has come to my attention that Jeffs has been systematically removing the established leaders of the religion and the community from positions of power or influence. Most recently was the removal of Mayor Dan Barlow who also served as the FLDS's public relations man. The FLDS Patriarch, Joseph I. Barlow was removed. It is my understanding that Louis Barlow and Jeffs orignally held the same office within the FLDS as apostles. Louis Barlow has been removed as well. Fred Jessop, the long time bishop and most senior member of the FLDS church was also removed from power through somewhat questionable tactics. He never actually publicly resigned. Jeffs reported on Saturday, January 3 during a meeting by way of speaker phone that he had released Fred Jessop as bishop and the Fred Jessop was in full agreement with these matters. To my knowledge, no one has seen or heard from Fred Jessop since this incident. I would like to convey that many people from within the FLDS church are concerned in regard to Uncle Fred's whereabouts. Of particular interest is how Jeffs declared himself the FLDS' new leader and how he has organized the new power structure. On September 15, 2003, Jeffs claimed in a general meeting that he had received several revelations. I will now quote portions of these revelations: "Thus verily sayeth the Lord, My servant Warren Jeffs is to fill the First Presidency. My servant Wendal Neilson is to be ordained and set apart as High Priest and First Councilor to the Presidency and Fredrick M. Jessop is to remain as Second Counselor to the Presidency and they are to stand as one. Wendal Neilson is to be ordained under the hand of my servant Warren." Jeffs then explained that Leroy Jeffs, the patriarch of the Church on August 21, 2003 ordained the President of the Church to that office. He then proceeded to say that he had been "given another revelation in which he was told to ordain 12 additional High Priests. These men are as follows: James (Jim) Allred, Fredrick Merrill Jessop, Edson Jessop, Lamar Johnson, Edmund Barlow, Steven Harker, Joseph Steed, Rulon Jessop, Gerald Williams, Boyd Roundy, Leroy Steed, and Paul Stanley Jessop Senior. Jeffs then said that Kevin Barlow was to be the superintendent of all priesthood schools and that Leroy Jeffs and Richard Allred would act as councilors." More recently, William Timpson, was appointed as the new FLDS bishop to replace Fred Jessop. All the individuals placed in power represent proven loyalists to Jeffs. It is unlikely that a major split will occur anytime soon as Jeffs has been quite successful in establishing himself as the only power. The Barlows have preached a concept of one-man leadership that has come full round to ultimately remove them from power. Jeffs has refined this doctrine even further. He claims to govern the FLDS church by way of a "benevolent dictatorship". Now that Jeffs has been initially accepted, the Barlows really have no way to make a grab for power because of the one-man doctrine that they worked so hard to establish. I don't think they ever expected a renegade from Salt Lake City to come into the position of the "one man" and have absolute power. However, it is possible that Jeffs will abandon many of the members of the FLDS church. This does not mean that he plans on giving up the UEP anytime soon as it is his only source of income. My Sources tell me that Jeffs is in the process of building a new community in a secret location and that he plans on taking a few of the elite to live there. Some evidence points to this compound being in Mexico. One of my sources tells me that the compound is being called Zion. In the last year, Jeffs has become extremely paranoid and has essentially gone into hiding. This is probably the actual reason as to why he's building a secret compound. Lately, an ante rouge of bodyguards and wives attend him wherever he goes. The compound as well as other responsiblities has obviously cost a great deal. The members of the FLDS church are being required to provide huge amounts of money to Jeffs. Last week on January 17 in the Saturday Work Meeting directed by the new bishop, the elders were instructed to come up with another thousand dollars each to give Jeffs. Jeffs has obviously become increasingly frustrated with people being unable to pay. This latest demand also carries with it a threat of being left behind if you fail to come up with the money. And, this is just one of many required thousand dollar donations in the last little while. His need for cash has severely taxed the people of the FLDS church. Overall, Jeffs' leadership has been reckless at best. It's shocking to realize that the owner of a 100 million dollar asset could act so carelessly. I am sickened by the number of families Jeffs has been instrumental in destroying. It's baffling to see the men who choose to stay around after they've had everything taken from them. At least 50 men have been essentially turned into eunuchs. They continue to consider themselves members of the FLDS church. They watch while other men take their children and wives. It is their lot in life to put their noses to the grindstone and hope that in the next life they may be given families again. Jeffs' methods are cruel and final. He operates his benevolent dictatorship with a cold indifference. Most of the people he ostracizes are humiliated in public meetings before thousands of people. In my case, he told the congregation that I was a master deceiver. He said that he planned on publishing a list of names and that my name as well as two others would be listed in that publication. Jeffs defined what this meant by saying that "anybody who thinks they have priesthood when they don't are master deceivers." In the case of the 20 men who were recently ostracized he told them to stand up in an audience of more than 1,500 so that everyone could see who they were. He then publicly rebuked them. At the end of this meeting he required that the congregation get on their knees while he stood and prayed. Some people are concerned that I might be endangering myself for sticking up for my rights. And I do fear that some overly zealous person from within the FLDS church might take it upon themselves to do something rash. But more than that I fear what could would happen if Jeffs was allowed to act unchecked. I feel it's my responsibility to let the world know about the situation here in Colorado City and that in doing so, I ultimately make things safer and better for everyone by limiting what Jeffs can do. Jeffs claims that "he fears no man or set of men." And yet he has walled his compound in Hildale with an 8 foot fence and has surrounded himself with bodyguards. I believe that Jeffs' actions show that in fact he is afraid to face the troubles he has created. I believe that what I'm doing here today does impact Jeffs in ways that are helpful to the people of the FLDS organization. Some of the zealous young people within the FLDS organization need to be made aware of the implications of acting in a rash manner. Anything you do that might harm another individual will bring down a thorough investigation of this people. The very religion you are trying to protect will be exposed beyond your wildest imagination. I know that most people within the FLDS church will reject the advice I'm offering them. But a least the information will be out there. There may come a time they'll be able to use this information in order to react in an appropriate way. It is my hope that more people will stand up to Jeffs. If you are scared, just stand up and you will find that you have lots of support; just make sure that your family is standing with you. I'm your friend and will gladly help in any way that I can. I am deeply concerned for the young people who are choosing to run away. I feel that these people need a tremendous amount of support. I am concerned that the world may not be aware of how sheltered these young people have been. They were raised in a culture that is quite different from what they are moving into and I fear that they are extremely vulnerable to some of the pitfalls of being a teenager. I would like to extend an offer of friendship to anyone who needs help. Please contact me and I will be happy to stand with you. I want to say, lets stand up for whats right and help stop this evil dictatorship from destroying more families. Almost all the people here really are good people and I love them all. They just follow blindly and they are taught to not ask questions."

MohaveCountyNews.com Originally published January 23, 2004

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