Polygamist Leader Sentenced for Child Sex Abuse
Samuel Bateman, a polygamist leader, received a 50-year prison sentence for a yearslong scheme involving the coercion of underage girls into sexual acts and their subsequent kidnapping from protective custody. His guilty plea encompassed conspiracy to transport minors for sexual activity and conspiracy to commit kidnapping. The sentence, deemed effectively life imprisonment by the judge, followed emotional victim impact statements detailing the lasting trauma inflicted. Bateman’s actions, including utilizing his religious authority to obtain “wives,” were detailed as a horrific abuse of power.
John Q. Hosedrinker