Excerpt from his NYTimes obituary:
Tom Green, who spent six years in prison in Utah after being convicted of polygamy and child rape in a case that garnered widespread attention, died on Feb. 28. He was 72.

His death was announced by his family, who did not say where he died or what the cause was.

Before his trial in 2001, Mr. Green appeared frequently with five wives on national television shows including “Jerry Springer” and “Dateline NBC,” arguing that his lifestyle was a constitutional right.

The appearances proved to be his undoing: He caught the attention of David O. Leavitt, a county prosecutor in Utah (and the brother of the state’s governor, Michael O. Leavitt). In a rare use of a state law, Mr. Leavitt charged Mr. Green with bigamy.

In court papers, Mr. Leavitt, a Mormon, contended that Mr. Green had been able to elude prosecution by marrying without state sanction. “Green has intentionally made very complex his legal relationships to his wives,” he wrote. But, he added, “Green’s scheme is a very public challenge to our marriage laws.”

Mr. Green was convicted on four counts of bigamy and one charge of criminal nonsupport for failure to take care of nine of his children. In 2002 he was convicted of child rape for having sex with his first wife when she was 13 and he was in his 30s.

He was the first man in more than 50 years to be prosecuted in Utah for having multiple wives.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/03/05/us/tom-green-dead.html

Most of the rest of the obit is a thumbnail history of polygamy in Utah. It also reports he left 3 wives, 34 children and 54 grandchildren.

The prarie dresses are just... meh

If people want to live like they are married without being married and no one is being forced, raped, or abused, I don't see how you can stop it.

Particularly since it's hard to know whether we're seeing the wives or the daughters - or, as I suspect, a bit of both. Anyone here with more discernment than me?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/09/2021 01:31PM by Soft Machine.

If only the wives had super tall hair.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/09/2021 01:56PM by bradley.

That's the problem. There is massive abuse, rape and trafficking happening in the polygamy groups. I know, I'm a victim advocate. This is why polygamy is illegal. If you don't think men marrying multiple wives and have untold amount of children is a problem, then you have a problem. The wives, since they are not legal, live off welfare (your tax paying dollar is funding polygamy). Second, the husband confiscate that money and gives it to their church prophet. Third, the wives often fight for the husband's attention (which he loves). Sister wives are treated poorly and her kids as well. Fourth, the kids are molested by the father along with uncles, cousins and other members. Girls are married off at 14 years old to much older men. Fifth, boys are sent to work in the fields at age 8 often without food, water, proper shelter. Boys are beaten if they don't do what they are told. Shall I go on?

Thank you for your post Utahred.

It's always good to hear that victims have advocates. No doubt you do good work.

It's a tragedy that this situation does not seem able to be definitively resolved.

We've spoken through the years of similar issues in British Columbia, Canada.

I wonder if you would consider starting your own thread, highlighting this same post you've made here on this one. (This is a thread from 2021 and may not get the widest readership at this point - if your post were used to start a new thread hopefully it would stand out more).

We used to talk more frequently about polygamy and its supremely negative effects on women and children.

It's hard to imagine that between governments and law enforcement the children cannot be protected and an end brought to these illegal and abusive communes.

I agree with Nightingale, Utahred. Your post deserves its own thread. Polygamy is abuse. And in my mind the LDS church has not done nearly enough to clean up its own mess.

One Man, Six Wives and Twenty Nine Children documentary:

https://youtu.be/vqORJHyNWJc

Still, western society is hypocritical on this. It encourages people to sleep around with multiple "partners" and to experiment but frowns on marrying more than one person.

He was done for statuory rape which was probably the right legal way to go... But if they were to enforce that law properly a lot of famous rock stars would go to jail.

Selective enforcement is a very common practice.
it works especially well when it is politically motivated.

Society pays for this situation where the "extra" wives haven't a job or means of support. They go on welfare/public support.

The "family" bleeds the beast, ie making the taxpayers support the polygamist life style.

There is a term in the law, "At Arm's Length", which refers to a negotiation in which the parties are independent and of basically the same strength. It's a pie-in-the-sky view of how negotiations should take place.

In real life, one side usually has more 'oomph' when it comes to calling the shots.

I hope some females respond...

See, males, in the boys like girls scenario, like to think that they bring more oomph to courtship than does the female. At least way back in time, my generation didn't mind marrying 'up', but the preference was probably marrying 'equal' or pulling someone up from a lesser circumstance.

If you're getting what I'm driving at, you'll understand when I opine that polygamous marriages pretty much always involve the man marrying 'down'.

Why would a 'strong' woman become the second wife? Mistress? You bet! But second or third wife? Yielding to that smacks of 'I don't have any better options.'


There...got rid of that itch...

The real question is why did Drew Barrymore marry him?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Green

Oh no. You didn't.

Please tell me you didn't.

Oh, THAT Tom Green. The one with the finger and not the wives.

Got Fingered. Cinematic masterpiece. Not!

I vaguely recall a polygamist family in Bullfrog AZ or UT (I think). I forgot the name of the male, but I think last name was either native or hispanic, and it was a recognized name in Utah politics.

His wives were by and large lawyers. None of the group was LDS or FLDS, they just wanted to be a polygamist family in SE Utah. It takes all kinds. In any case, the women were at least as well educated as the man.

Anybody else remember that family? My google search failed to turn them up. Perhaps I need to fast and pray to google.

Alex Joseph

Tom Green and his wives appeared on a 1997 case of Judge Judy.

Pluto TV doesn't have individual Judge Judy episodes on demand but it's airing right now on the Judge Judy channel #1120.

I think you are thinking of Alex Joseph. Only one of his wives was an atty. She wasn't all that good of an atty, having been sanctioned several times by the Utah bar.


As to why strong intelligent women marry polygamously it is because their religious beliefs tell them it's the only way they will get into heaven. As we all know, religious beliefs have little to do with education or intelligence, but they can get so imebedded in a person's psyche that you can never escape them.


I recommend the book "Seventeen Sisters" where the 17 daughters of Albert Barlow tell their stories. Some embrace polygamy as the only virtuous way to live. Others find the very idea repulsive. Barlow married three wives and spent many years in prison. Polygamy is bad enough by itself, but then to go to prison for it. YIKES!!!!!

The sisters tell their stories. Most of the events happen in SLC, Utah. It is a good book.

Mebbe someone wrote a book about Alex Joseph and his many wives.

As for marrying up -- the polygamous wives THINK they are marrying way up because their shared husband will get them into the highest kingdom of heaven.

It takes them a while to realize that they ore the ones doing all the work.

I think they lived in Big Water Utah.

Alex Joseph was a former police officer and he might have been a Mormon, or at least had ties to the LDS Church.

When Dr. Allred was murdered Alex Joseph was an initial suspect. Alex told LE that this looked like the work of Ervil Lebaron, and he was right.