FLDS Defendant Will Challenge Texas Bigamy Statute

At a state court hearing Tuesday in San Angelo, Texas, attorneys for FLDS member Wendell Loy Nielsen said they will challenge the constitutionality of Texas' bigamy statute when Nielsen goes on trial in October. Yesterday's San Angelo (TX) Standard Times reports that the prosecution of Nielsen is the first growing out of the April 2008 raid on the FLDS Yearning for Zion Ranch that does not directly involve sexual assault of a child. He is charged with three counts of bigamy. Each count could bring a sentence of up to ten years in prison.