The polygamous family of "Sister Wives" is continuously battling the government of Utah for its bigamy law. The Brown family has reportedly joined a group of protesters last week in an attempt to get the attention of their state officials in their appeal to drop the anti-bigamy law. The Utah government though remains solid on its belief that such marital status brings several domestic cases of abuse among women and children.
Probably inspired by the success of TLC's "Sister Wives," hundreds of polygamous families rallied in front of the Utah capitol last Friday to deliver their plea to drop the anti-bigamy law. They said that they will not stop their fight until the state legalizes their right to practice plural marriage. Reality star and a husband of four, Kody Brown, was very much present during the march as he holds a sign writing: "I'm a father, a husband, and a lover, NOT a felon."
The rally comes after the Brown family was denied by the U.S. Supreme Court of their challenge to Utah's bigamy law last January. Instead of legalizing polygamy, the state legislators are reportedly changing the law to have the convicted under the bigamy law suffer harsher penalties once proven that they also committed domestic abuse. This makes Utah's bigamy law stricter than that of the other states of America.
This decision follows reports from witnesses to women and children abuse brought about by plural marriages. Supporters of the law claim that polygamy leads to welfare fraud, child abuse, sexual abuse and even forced labor. The Utah prosecutors then agree to leave polygamists alone, but the ban still continues to prevent domestic crimes including sexual assault and underage marriage. There are reportedly 30,000 recorded polygamists in Utah, and 10 of them were reportedly charged with violating the law between 2001 and 2011.
The saga of the Brown family and the Utah government reportedly began in September 2010, the same time when "Sister Wives" piloted on TLC. Utah prosecutors then investigated the Browns, which apparently forced them to leave their Lehi home to move to Las Vegas. Following this, the Brown family then filed a lawsuit against the unsolicited investigation.
Back in 2013, the Brown family tasted a legal victory when a Utah federal judge ruled that the law has violated the privacy and religious freedom of the polygamous family. However, the appeals court in Denver did not give the Browns the right to sue for the violation of their right since they were not charged under the Utah law. This decision has made the Browns along with their attorney, Jonathan Turley, disappointed.
Meri Brown has been Kody's legal wife until they secretly divorced last in 2014. Robyn now serves as the legal Brown wife, while Christine, Janelle, and Meri remain Kody's spiritual wives. All four wives live with Kody under the same roof together with their 16 kids as Maddie and Mykelti are already married.
