YFZ kids headed home

The news surrounding the Great Eldorado Polygamist Roundup is still churning fast and furious. Here are the most recent highlights:

First things first, Judge Walther signed the release order allowing most kids to go home. The blogger at I Perceive examines the release order and suggests that FLDS' attorneys may be the ones suffering from "Stockholm Syndrome."

Still bristling from her highly public bench slapping by the appellate courts, Judge Walther then convened a grand jury yesterday which issued 18 indictments, all of which so far remain sealed. No way to tell how many, if any, are related to the YFZ Ranch.

If they actually pursue charges, we'll soon find out whether Judge Walther's interpretation that the 1,700 acre ranch is a single "household" gets overturned or if the original search warrant holds up. Since the Third Court of Appeals already shot down her "one household" interpretation in the child custody cases, I personally doubt it will hold up on the criminal side, either.

Meanwhile, see this must-read story from the Deseret News in which state Rep. Harvey Hildebran described how he changed Texas' law specifically hoping to drive FLDS out of the state.

Also, an FLDS official says the group will henceforth abide by marriage age laws in whatever jurisdiction it operates.

In Canada, events in Texas have inspired the British Colombia Attorney General to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate FLDS members there. Actually pursuing charges, though, has proved difficult.

In a thematically related story, at The Mex Files we find a terrific discussion of polygamous Mormonism in Mexico, including connections between such groups and the country's most famous polygamist, Pancho Villa.

See more recent coverage from The Common Room.