Nephi Jeffs
Nephi Steed Jeffs | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Personal secretary |
| Known for | Involvement with and relation to the FLDS Jeffs family |
| Parent(s) | Rulon Jeffs and Marilyn Steed |
| Relatives | Warren Jeffs, Lyle Jeffs, Seth Jeffs, Brent W. Jeffs |
Nephi Jeffs is an American Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints leader. He is the bishop of the Short Creek Stake, and is his brother Warren Jeffs's personal secretary.
Family
[edit]Nephi Steed Jeffs was born to the polygamous FLDS prophet Rulon Jeffs and his fourth wife Marilyn Steed. He is the full brother of Warren, Lyle, and Seth Jeffs among others. Members of the Jeffs family are considered polygamist elite and FLDS members consider their members to be of "royal blood."[1] Being the son of prophet Rulon Jeffs and the brother of prophet Warren Jeffs secured Nephi's place in the FLDS hierarchy.
As of May 2008, Nephi had acquired 14 wives. Of members of his ward listed on records obtained by a federal investigation, Nephi had the second highest number of wives.[2] Church elder Wendell Nielsen had the most wives listed at 21, while the third highest number of wives in the ward was Isaac Jeffs, another Jeffs brother, with 10.[3] One of Nephi's wives is Elizabeth Jessop, who in 2008 was 16 while Nephi was 38.[4]
In the FLDS
[edit]Rulon Jeffs's secretary had always been Rebecca Musser's "sister-wife Mother" Noreen. In Musser's memoir The Witness Wore Red, she describes how Noreen was abruptly replaced with Nephi, who reported to Warren instead of Rulon.[5] After Rulon died and Warren solidified power, Nephi continued being his secretary and personal confidant,[6] also acting as a general personal assistant.[7]
During the April 2008 raid of YFZ Ranch in Eldorado, Texas, Nephi was listed in a federal search warrant. The state's motion to seize property included some of Nephi's personal photographs.[8]
As of 8 August 2016, Nephi Jeffs was named as the presiding Bishop of the Short Creek Stake, following his Brother Lyle Jeffs fleeing from the US judicial system.
Warren Jeffs's incarceration
[edit]After Warren was apprehended and incarcerated in 2006, Nephi frequently visited Warren in jail. Of the ten trips that he made to see Warren, he was accompanied on eight of them by Lindsay Barlow, another FLDS member who acted as Nephi's security.[9][10] Barlow also accompanied Nephi to the courtroom hearings as security.[11]
While Warren was being held at the Purgatory Jail in Hurricane, Utah, he made the confession to Nephi that he was not the true prophet and had taken power even though he "was not called of God." Nephi did not believe the statement and refuted it with Warren, who told him to spread the news to his followers. Nephi did not distribute the 25 January video like Warren wanted, though it found its way to the public eventually.[12] Jeffs suggested that Warren was "being tested by the Lord" and promised Warren that his followers "will not forsake you."[13]
During Warren's incarceration, Nephi "was responsible for transcribing, decoding and delivering all of Warren's messages."[7]
Legal issues
[edit]On 9 April 2015, U.S. District Judge David Sam held Nephi Jeffs in contempt of court.[14] In 2012, the United States Department of Labor began an investigation into the role of the FLDS Church and Jeffs in suspected child labor violations.[15][14] A CNN report claimed that children were used to harvest nuts at the Southern Utah Pecan Ranch in 2012.[15][14] Judge Sam ruled that Nephi and Lyle Jeffs disobeyed subpoenas requiring them to answer questions from Labor Department investigators.[14]
References
[edit]- ^ "From Polygamist Royalty To FLDS Lost Boy". NPR. 21 May 2009. Retrieved 18 April 2014.
- ^ "Records offer glimpse into polygamist families". NBC News. 8 May 2008. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
- ^ "Church records offer rare look inside polygamist families". USA Today. 9 May 2008. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ "FLDS for May 9th". The Common Room. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ Musser, Rebcecca (2013). The Witness Wore Red: The 19th Wife Who Brought Polygamous Cult Leaders to Justice. Hachette Digital, Inc. ISBN 9781455527847.
- ^ Brower, Sam (2011). Prophet's Prey: My Seven-Year Investigation Into Warren Jeffs and the Fundamentalist Church of Latter-Day Saints. Bloomsbury Publishing USA. p. 302. ISBN 9781608192755.
- ^ a b "Letter on FLDS persons of interest". Child Brides. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ "SEARCH WARRANT" (PDF). Magistrate Court of Schleicher County. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ "Jailed Polygamist Sect Leader's Many Visitors Suggest He Still Controls Church". Fox News. 30 November 2006. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ "Washington County sends dossiers of select FLDS members to Texas officials". Deseret News. 11 June 2008. Archived from the original on 4 November 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ "Jeffs Appears in Court; Evidence Hearing Set for Nov. 21". KSL. 27 September 2006. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ Weyermann, Debra (2011). Answer Them Nothing: Bringing Down the Polygamous Empire of Warren Jeffs. Chicago Review Press. pp. 247–248. ISBN 9781569769157.
- ^ Mullins, Ki (7 November 2007). "Warren S. Jeffs Attempts Suicide". Digital Journal. Retrieved 26 April 2014.
- ^ a b c d "Judge finds Warren Jeffs' brothers in contempt". The Associated Press. Salt Lake Tribune. 9 April 2015. Retrieved 30 April 2015.
- ^ a b Carlisle, Nate (17 September 2014). "Here's more on federal investigation into FLDS child labor". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 30 April 2015.