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Arizona-Utah Border Towns Shed Troubled Past, Embrace “Life After Jeffs”
COLORADO CITY, Ariz. – The days of prairie dresses, secluded compounds, and an inherent distrust of outsiders are largely fading into memory for two towns nestled on the Arizona-Utah border. Colorado City, Arizona, and its neighbor, Hildale, Utah, are undergoing a remarkable transformation, now resembling any other vibrant community in this picturesque region near Zion National Park.
Weekend soccer games, local bars, and even a winery now define the social landscape, a stark contrast to a not-so-distant past where youth sports and cocktail hours were strictly forbidden. This dramatic shift comes after courts wrested control of the towns from the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), whose notorious leader, Warren Jeffs, is serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting underage girls. The speed of this transformation has been so profound that the towns were released from court-ordered supervision last summer, nearly two years ahead of schedule.
“What you see is the outcome of a massive amount of internal turmoil and change within people to reset themselves,” stated Willie Jessop, a former FLDS spokesman who later broke with the sect. “We call it ‘life after Jeffs’ – and, frankly, it’s a great life.”
A Dark Turn
While some former members recall fond memories of growing up in the FLDS, describing a close-knit community where mothers cared for each other’s children and kids played together, the atmosphere shifted dramatically after Jeffs assumed leadership following his father’s death in 2002. Under Jeffs’ iron grip, families were torn apart as church leaders cast out men deemed “unworthy” and reassigned their wives and children to others. Children were pulled from public schools, basketball hoops were removed, and followers were dictated how to spend their time and what to eat.
“It started to go into a very sinister, dark, cult direction,” explained Shem Fischer, who left the towns in 2000 after his father’s family was fragmented by the church. Fischer later returned to Hildale to open a lodge.
The FLDS settled in Colorado City and Hildale in the 1930s to continue practicing polygamy after separating from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which renounced plural marriage in 1890. After a disastrous 1953 raid on the FLDS brought public backlash, authorities largely overlooked polygamy in the towns until Jeffs took the reins.
Jeffs went on the run in 2005 after being charged with orchestrating the marriage of a teenage girl to an already married 28-year-old follower, landing him on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list before his arrest the following year. In 2011, he was convicted in Texas of sexually assaulting two girls, ages 12 and 15, and sentenced to life in prison.
A Court-Ordered Overhaul
Even after Jeffs’ arrest, federal prosecutors alleged that the towns continued to operate as an extension of the church, denying non-followers essential services like building permits, water hookups, and police protection. In 2017, a court placed the towns under supervision, effectively severing the church’s influence from their governments and shared police department. Separately, control of a trust overseeing the church’s real estate was transferred to a community board, which has since been selling the properties.
Roger Carter, the court-appointed monitor, noted in his progress reports that the towns, having functioned as a theocracy for 90 years, had to learn to operate “a first-generation representative government.” Private property ownership, a novel concept for many, was introduced as the FLDS had controlled most of the land through a trust, dictating where followers could live. Residents, unaccustomed to transparency and government policies, sought clarity on whether decisions were still influenced by religious affiliation.
Carter concluded that while the towns previously took direction from the sect, their civic leaders now prioritize residents’ needs, a key factor in the court lifting oversight last July.
“Like a Normal Town”
With its leader imprisoned and its control over the towns diminished, many FLDS members have either left the sect or moved away. Other places of worship have opened, and practicing FLDS members are now believed to constitute only a small percentage of the towns’ populations.
Hildale Mayor Donia Jessop expressed pride in the community’s significant strides. Like many others, she has reconnected with family members who were divided by the church and had ceased communication.
She recalled returning to Hildale after a devastating 2015 flood, which killed 13 people, to help search for missing loved ones. This experience allowed her to reconnect with a sister she hadn’t seen in years.
“We started to realize that the love was still there – that my sister that I hadn’t been able to speak to for in so many years was still my sister, and she missed me as bad as I missed her,” the mayor shared. “And it just started to open doors that weren’t open before.”
Longtime resident Isaac Wyler described being ostracized after the FLDS expelled him in 2004. He was refused service at a local store and burger joint, and police ignored his complaints of farm vandalism.
Today, things are “very different.” His religious affiliation no longer impacts his interactions with police, and the old feed store, burger joint, and FLDS-run grocery have been replaced by a large supermarket, bank, pharmacy, coffee shop, and bar.
“Like a normal town,” he affirmed.
New residents with no FLDS ties are also moving in. Gabby Olsen, who grew up in Salt Lake City, first arrived in 2016 as an intern for a climbing and canyoneering guide service.
She was drawn to the mountains, canyons, clean air, and 300 days of sunshine annually. Despite people “all the time” questioning her move to a place known for polygamy, it didn’t deter her.
“When you tell people, ‘Hey, we’re getting married in Hildale,’ they kind of chuckle, because they just really don’t know what it’s about,” said Olsen’s husband, Dion Obermeyer, who runs the guide service with her. “But of course when they all came down here, they’re all quite surprised. And you’re like, ‘Oh yeah, there’s a winery.'”
A Ways to Go
Even with the FLDS’ influence waning, it hasn’t completely vanished, and the towns are grappling with new challenges. Residents report that the newfound openness has brought common societal issues like drug use to Hildale and Colorado City.
Moreover, some individuals continue to practice polygamy. A Colorado City sect member with over 20 spiritual “wives,” including 10 underage girls, was sentenced in late 2024 to 50 years in prison for coercing girls into sexual acts and other crimes.
Briell Decker, who was 18 when she became Jeffs’ 65th “wife” in an arranged marriage, has since left the church. Now 40, remarried with a child, Decker works at a residential support center in Colorado City that assists individuals leaving polygamy.
Decker believes it will take several generations to fully recover from the abuses perpetrated by the FLDS under Jeffs. “I do think they can, but it’s going to take a while because so many people are in denial,” Decker stated.
“Still, they want to blame somebody. They don’t really want to take accountability.”