Official: History of injuries found in polygamist sect children
By LISA SANDBERG
Austin Bureau
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5742558.html
AUSTIN — Dozens of children seized from a West Texas polygamist sect had broken or fractured bones in the past, state officials said today.
Medical exams indicate that at least 41 of the 463 children in state custody had previous broken or fractured bones, said Marleigh Meisner, spokeswoman for Texas Child Protective Services.
“It is cause for concern and something that we are investigating,” she said.
For the past month, child welfare investigators had focused nearly all their attention on the alleged sexual abuse of young girls who once resided with their parents at the Yearning for Zion Ranch outside Eldorado, alluding only occasionally to suspected physical abuse. This is the first time state officials have provided specific information of what might be considered physical abuse.
Texas officials have also told legislators they’re looking at the possible sexual abuse of some young boys taken from the ranch.
In a written update provided to lawmakers today, the state Child Protective Services division says it is looking into possible sexual abuse of boys based on interviews and journal entries.
The agency provided no other details.
Earlier this morning, Carey Cockrell, head of the Department of Family and Protective Services, briefed a Senate panel about the number of children, some of whom were very young, found with past bone breaks.
It was not clear how many of the children might have been injured while playing or working on the 1,700-acre ranch they once called home.
Earlier this month, the state seized all 463 children from the ranch amid allegations that underage girls were being “spiritually married” to much older men and sexually abused. The followers belong to a breakaway Mormon sect that practices polygamy. It is known as the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. The children have been placed in group homes and shelters around the state.
FLDS spokesman Rod Parker called Cockerell’s testimony “a deliberate effort to mislead the public.”
Parker said any broken bones would have been treated in medical facilities away from the ranch in Eldorado and that doctors are required to report suspected abuse.
Parker said state officials were “trying to politically inoculate themselves from the consequences of this horrible tragedy.”
On Monday, CPS announced that almost 60 percent of the underage girls living on the Eldorado ranch are pregnant or already have children. Another child was born to a teen mother on Tuesday.
Under Texas law, children under the age of 17 generally cannot consent to sex with an adult. A girl can get married with parental permission at 16, but none of the sect’s girls is believed to have had a legal marriage under state law.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
