Oppal mulls charges against polygamists

Reuters/August 1, 2007

A special prosecutor has completed his report on whether criminal charges should be filed against a polygamist community, but no decision has been made, an official said Tuesday.

B.C. Attorney-General Wally Oppal is reviewing the report that looked, in part, at whether prosecuting members of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints would run into constitutional problems.

"We're expecting to be able to release something in the near future," said Neil MacKenzie, a spokesman for the B.C. Criminal Justice Branch.

RCMP launched an investigation into the FLDS in Bountiful two years ago after media reports raised allegations that underage women were being forced into marriages with older men.