Welcome
to Polygamy Books
Meet John R. Llewellyn
Author, Polygamy Expert, Investigator
 |
John Llewellyn is uniquely qualified as a
polygamy expert and can speak to the issues in a way no one else can. He
is highly articulate and thoroughly knowledgeable about law enforcement
polygamy strategies, government attitudes, and the vast issues inside and
outside of polygamy. |
He knows all
the leaders of polygamy groups, many of their members, and a multitude of
polygamists who live outside a Group,
including Tom Green and his wives and former wives.
He is available
for interview by TV and the Press, and he has polygamist contacts who are
willing to talk about their lifestyle. He also knows all the key law
enforcement and government figures involved.
John R. Llewellyn, retired Salt Lake County
Sheriff's Lieutenant,
specialized in sex crime investigation which included polygamy
complaints. He compiled an intelligence file on mass murderer Ervil
LeBaron, who in 1977 ordered the death of Doctor Rulon C. Allred,
leader of Utah's
second largest polygamist group.
LeBaron, a
self-imposed "One Mighty and Strong," attempted to extort tithing
from Utah's
polygamist groups. "Murder of a Prophet" is a paradigm of the Allred murder,
and factual expose´ of the dark side of Utah polygamist cults that has been
cleverly disguised as religion.
The source of all the abuse in
organized polygamy can be traced to the false claim of religious
authority. The polygamist leaders have created a god in their
own image, a god that yields to the prophet's every whim. The
accumulation of wives is not religion, it's a business.
In order to best combat and understand the
polygamist, deputy
Llewellyn studied Mormon doctrine and was converted to Mormonism and then
Mormon fundamentalism. Impressed with the integrity, virtue and undaunted
conviction of many of the polygamists, after his retirement, Llewellyn
became a member of Apostolic United Brethren.
However, when the leadership of Apostolic United
Brethren
re-postured, claiming "all" the priesthood keys and pretending
they were the sole conduit to a celestial exaltation, Llewellyn took a
second look at the fundamentalist belief structure and summarily
disassociated himself.
In 1995 Mr. Llewellyn became an investigator for
Virginia Hill in a
civil action to recover 1.54 million dollars in cash stolen from her by
members of Apostolic United Brethren. Hill was at the time the
estranged wife of Harry Hilf, the Godfather of Detroit gambling.
The
Allred polygamists had been retained to purchase the Desert Inn Ranch, the
Las Vegas mob's recreational ranch in southern
Utah. The
polygamists maliciously converted the money to their own use while
ironically attempting to cheat each other out of their serendipitous
treasure. One Allred polygamist, Jeffery J. Norman, was imprisoned for
money laundering.
It took three years for Llewellyn and investigator,
Rod Williams, to
build a case against Owen A Allred, leader of Apostolic United
Brethren, and his two henchmen, Dennis E. Matthews and John C.
Putvin. Part of the money was eventually traced to the purchase of a
used car lot, Diamond Automotive Specialties Inc., negotiated by Putvin and
managed by James E. Sandmire.
The car
dealership was recently shut down by the
Utah Motor Vehicle Enforcement Division for selling stolen cars smuggled
into Utah from Canada.
The law suit is still before the courts and is the
impetus for
Llewellyn's second fact-based novel that will be completed this fall.
Llewellyn, now a free lance writer, is recognized as an
expert on Mormon fundamentalism and polygamy. He is also the lead
investigator in a lawsuit against polygamist, James D. Harmston and his
True and Living
Church, headquartered at
Manti, Utah. He has
been a consultant for the Attorney General's Office.
Llewellyn, who has studied all the polygamist
cartels, including the
infamous Kingston family, states: "Utah's polygamist
groups are corrupt beyond belief. Although there are many virtuous and law
abiding polygamists within the subculture, the leaders, more
political than religious, have spawned cults merchandising hope,
exaltation, and the license to take plural wives. Dozens of vulnerable
men have lost wives, daughters and family fortunes to unscrupulous
prophets.
Whenever a man or institution claims to be the sole and
exclusive mouthpiece of God he invites scrutiny, and that man and
entity should be carefully examined and subject to iconoclasm
—attacking cherished beliefs and institutions. If they are what they
claim, they have nothing to fear."
Because the author was once part of the polygamist
subculture, individual polygamists have conveyed their dislike of Murder of
a
Prophet because they feel it portrays all polygamists as abusers.
Consequently he has been accused of being a hypocrite and traitor to
the principle of plural marriage. The author's response–
"Notwithstanding there are many honest, harmless polygamists that
would never participate in the abuse portrayed by certain characters in
Murder of a Prophet, the elements for abuse are inherent and exploited in
all of the polygamist cults they are: Pretended revelation and priesthood
authority.
Women are taken from one man and given to another.
It is common for a young attractive, single lady to have an older man claim
he has received revelation that she should be his plural wife.
Gullible men have been duped into quit-claiming their property over
to a corrupt priesthood. Non-profit corporations and land trusts have
been formed designed to inveigle property away from members. Lying,
cheating, manipulating servile members, encouraging hatred towards
government, the LDS
Church and
minorities, as well as covering up criminal activity in these cults are
well documented.
"For years, loyal benign members have been aware of
the perversion and corruption in their groups and have done nothing to
clean it up because of their misguided belief in priesthood omnipotence,
illusions of Mormon superiority and a symbiotic dependency of an authority
that permits the incontinent taking of more than one wife.
"On the other hand, the practice of plural marriage must be working;
otherwise there wouldn't be so many. Scholars and pundits estimate there
are as many as 60,000 in and around Utah.
However, I believe a more realistic figure is 25,000. "Either way,
Mormon fundamentalism is a valid subculture and here to stay. Society has
chosen to openly tolerate homosexuality, then why not polygamy.
As long as the
LDS Church
continues to flourish, Mormon
fundamentalist converts will continue to come from the frustrated ranks of
this Church. "As long as the plural relationship is based on free agency—adult
mutual consent, respect, love and cooperation, all the ingredients of a
successful monogamous relationship, then why not?
The true polygamist, the one who actually believes
and lives his
religion, treats his wives with inordinate respect and dignity. There is
nothing ungodly about their relationship. The problems arise when
power and authority are misused. There is a fine line between power
and sex."
Llewellyn as an author, has written several feature
articles for The
Event Newsweekly, Fate Magazine and a historical article about
heavyweight champion Jack Dempsey that will appeared in the
May-June issue of Salt Lake Magazine.
