Rena Chynoweth
Rena Chynoweth | |
---|---|
Nationality | American |
Details | |
Victims | Rulon C. Allred |
Date | May 10, 1977 |
Rena Chynoweth is an American former
Early life
When she was three years old, Rena Chynoweth's parents were converted to the Mormon fundamentalist
Allred's death and trial
Ervil soon organized his followers into a new church, the
In May 1977 Chynoweth and Marston travelled from Mexico to Murray, Utah, where Allred's office was, stopping to buy weapons and disguises en route. They reached Murray on May 10 and entered Allred's office disguised in wigs and sunglasses. Chynoweth shot him seven times, fatally wounding him, before the pair fled. They hid out in Mexico but were soon apprehended and brought back to Utah.
Chynoweth was tried for the murder of Allred in March 1979 in a Utah court. After two weeks of testimony, the jury acquitted her of murder.[3] Dorothy Allred Solomon, daughter of victim Rulon Allred, gives a number of reasons for Chynoweth's acquittal. These include her convincing lies during the trial, sympathy for her pregnancy and the fact that she could not be identified by witnesses as she was disguised when the shooting took place.[4]: 295–296 Solomon also accuses the "Lambs of God" of intimidating the jury at the trial,[4]: 297 and suggests that in patriarchal Utah, "a society harbouring sexual discrimination would try to compensate in a court of law".[4]: 298
Leaving polygamy and civil trial
With her husband imprisoned, Chynoweth began to change her mind about polygamy and left the Church of the Lamb of God. In 1990, knowing that it was highly unlikely that she would be tried again, she published a "breezy, tell all memoir"
Chynoweth later remarried. She claims to have been controlled by Ervil LeBaron through fear. She now works to help children who have suffered from involvement in polygamy. She strongly supported the actions of Texas during the YFZ Ranch raid.[6][unreliable source?]
References
- ^ a b c d e Interview with Susan Ray Schmidt, stated to be serving as a proxy for Rena Chynoweth, on Polygamy: What Love Is This?, 23 April 2009 [1]
- ^ "Ervil LeBaron". www.mormonfundamentalism.com. Archived from the original on 2006-05-15.
- ^ Richard S. Van Wagoner, Mormon Polygamy: A History (Salt Lake City, 1989), p. 206.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Dorothy Allred Solomon, Daughter of the Saints: Growing Up in Polygamy (New York, 2003).
- ^ Jon Krakauer, Under the Banner of Heaven: A Story of Violent Faith (New York, 2004), p. 268.
- ^ Interview with Mike Watkiss.