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	Jeffs Trial Unlike Any Other, Reporters Say By Kiah Collier San Angel Standard-Times August 7, 2011 http://www.gosanangelo.com/news/2011/aug/06/jeffs-trial-unlike-any-other-reporters-say/ SAN ANGELO, Texas — "I've never seen anything like it." It's the most common reaction from attorneys, courthouse insiders and other observers — veterans and rookies alike — but especially among reporters, when asked about the Warren Jeffs trial. As in 2008 during and after the weeklong raid on the Yearning for Zion Ranch near Eldorado, media outlets from across the country descended upon San Angelo to cover the trial of the 55-year-old polygamous sect leader, who has been found guilty of sexually assaulting two girls who were 12 and 15 at the time. Many of the reporters have been covering the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for years — even before Jeffs was captured in Nevada five years ago when he was on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list. Although they cite different reasons, the sentiment is the same: This is surely one of the more bizarre trials in U.S. history, and, for many, the most bizarre trial they have ever covered. For Gary Tuchman, an Atlanta-based national correspondent for CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" who has been covering Jeffs and the FLDS for more than five years, the most astonishing thing about the trial has been how much the so-called prophet has spoken. During the six days of the guilt-innocence phase of his trial and the first day of sentencing, Jeffs spoke cumulatively for more than two hours, delivering a bellowing diatribe and another written proclamation he said came to him from God, as well as numerous unscripted attacks on the court for persecuting what he described as a holy, sacred and peaceful religious society. "What's so unusual about this case is that it's the first time we've heard this man talk live so prolifically," said Tuchman, who noted it also was a big surprise when Jeffs chose to represent himself on Day 4 of the trial. "We've heard him mutter things before in his last trial in Utah, he talked a little tiny bit, but we've never heard him talk like this, and the fact is, neither have most of his followers." Tuchman said Jeffs' long-windedness could be proof of a lot of different things. "Part of being the prophet is you don't associate with infidels. You don't give them the time of day," Tuchman said. "Almost everyone in that court is an infidel — the judge is, the prosecutors are and the journalists are ... and the jurors. We're all infidels to Warren Jeffs, and the fact that he's talking may indicate his desperation. It also may indicate his selfishness, his arrogance or a combination of all of those things." Will Weissert, a San Antonio-based Associated Press reporter, said there have been a multitude of unexpected moments during the proceedings, but he thinks the most shocking was when Jeffs fired his attorneys and decided to represent himself, "especially since he has been through seven attorneys," Weissert said. "I didn't know what to expect, but I didn't expect this," he said. Mike Watkiss, an investigative reporter who has covered sexual abuse in the FLDS church for about 30 years, said the most surprising thing about the trial has been Jeffs' "utter arrogance." "Mr. Jeffs whines about the persecution and the disruption of FLDS families. He has done more damage to the families within his own society than Texas Rangers could do if they had done 10 raids," said Watkiss, who grew up in a mainstream Mormon family in Utah and works for Phoenix-based television station KTVK. "And for him to cloak himself in this veneer of religious righteousness is, I know it's a lie. It breaks my heart, and I've just seen too many of his victims." Watkiss, however, said there isn't "an iota of anything new in this trial." "There is such a long and well-documented and well-chronicled history of these abuses, and no one's paid attention," said Watkiss, who, when asked about his apparent bias, said, "There's a big difference between being biased and being accurate." "Having come from the LDS background with polygamist history, I just knew what the truth was, I knew that girls don't have a choice," Watkiss said. "I don't have a bias. I just think I've told the truth." Steve Anderson, a book critic and senior legal correspondent for Marfa Public Radio who practiced law for 35 years, said, "I've never seen anything like this in a courtroom." Anderson, who also is an associate editor at Big Bend Gazette, said the most surprising part of the trial has been the raw and revealing evidence presented by the prosecution, specifically the audiotape played on Tuesday of Jeffs instructing women and girls on how to please him sexually. Although the recording the prosecution played the following day was of Jeffs' assault of the 12-year-old girl he had taken as his spiritual wife, Anderson said the previous day's tape was "much more horrific because you could understand it." Reporters, who are accustomed to being able to report in real time in the digital age, say the biggest challenge of covering the Jeffs trial — at least logistically — has been the ban on cameras, cellphones, tape recorders and any other kind of electronic devices in the courtroom. The policy has forced every media outlet to devise a system of getting the latest information out in a timely manner. State law allows cameras and electronic recording devices in state trial courts, but only at the discretion of the presiding judge. Judge Barbara Walther of the 51st District Court, who is handling the Jeffs case, has denied multiple requests to allow cameras and other recording devices in the courtroom during the trial.Tuchman, who covered the recent high-profile Casey Anthony trial in Florida state court, where cameras were permitted during proceedings, said he views the ban as problematic. "I think we always feel that journalists have a right to have cameras in the courtroom," Tuchman said. "It is a public building; it's not a secret club. Our viewers would understand the story much better if cameras were allowed in there." Also, Tuchman said, "It makes the story much less interesting." While expressing respect for Walther, Watkiss echoed Tuchman's sentiment, saying that he understands the policy but wishes cameras were allowed to capture the proceedings. "I think the judge, who I have the utmost admiration for, her strength and her savvy and moxie ... was concerned that cameras would ratchet up the theatrics — and they do," said Watkiss, who noted that people from all over the country have complained to him about the lack of footage. "I've been working in (television) for all my life. You introduce a camera in a situation, it suddenly changes, and I completely understand what she was saying. I now think that in retrospect, I wish there were a camera in there because I think the American public should have seen Warren Jeffs for who he is and what he does." Clayton Sandell, a Denver-based digital correspondent for ABC News, said the proceedings would have gotten much more media attention if cameras and other electronics had been allowed. Sandell said not being able to bring his cellphone in the courtroom has been the most challenging part of the covering the trial. "You're a little cut off in there," said Sandell, who has been surprised by the trial's pace. "It's really gone so much faster than any trial I've ever covered," he said. The issue is less of a concern for print journalists, who say they are impeded without their laptops and tape recorders at the ready, but who are used to taking handwritten notes — something made easier by Jeffs' slow, dictation-like manner of speaking. Some have expressed relief that the trial didn't attract an immense media presence. "I expected more of a circus," said Katy Vine, a senior editor at Texas Monthly who first covered the FLDS in 2009, about a year after the raid. Regardless of the constraints, a variety of media outlets have stuck around for the fast-paced, consequential trial. "This is a very important story," Tuchman said. "I mean, the story is interesting because it involves polygamy, but it's important to this nation because it involves child abuse, and that's why we're committed to this story. Child abuse is a scourge and ... the more public attention paid to children being abused, the better."
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