SALT LAKE CITY (Reuters) -
A
man who took his underage niece as his 15th wife was sentenced
Friday to up to 10 years in prison, prosecutors said.
David Ortell Kingston, 33, was convicted in June by a jury of
incest and unlawful sexual conduct with his niece, now aged 17.
She testified she was forced in 1997 by her father and uncle to
become the uncle's 15th wife.
Kingston, who has been in custody, was sentenced to up to five
years for each count to run consecutively, Richard Shepherd of
the Salt Lake County district attorney's office, said.
The case came to light after the teen-ager contacted police to
tell them she had run away from her uncle and had been beaten by
her father, John Kingston.
Polygamous marriages were a cornerstone of the Mormon Church
when its members, fleeing religious persecution, settled in
Utah.
But the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, as the
church is formally known, renounced polygamous marriages in 1890
as a condition to the territory becoming a U.S. state.
Although polygamy has been outlawed some people still practice
it. However, the Mormon Church excommunicates members who engage
in the practice.
The marriage between Kingston and his niece was conducted in
secret with the girl's father officiating.
The girl, who has not been identified, told officials the
Kingston clan was a group of polygamists composed of mostly
family members. None is a member of the Mormon church.
Prosecutors said the case was not based on polygamy, but on
child abuse.
