Utah Girl Escapes Polygamous Clan Only To Spend Years Getting Raped By Adoptive Father

A girl who escaped a polygamous group in Utah was raped by her adoptive father for years after an attachment therapy regime recommended the pair share the same bed. The adoptive dad, 42, was sentenced to a prison term of six years for the molestation and rape of the former Church of Latter Day Saints fundamentalist clan member. The name of the convicted rapist is being withheld to protect the identity of the victim.

The then 15-year-old teen reportedly thought she was given a new chance at life after leaving the fundamentalist religious sect. The sexual assault victim spent the bulk of her childhood in a secluded commune in Utah, according to the Everett Herald. After she was removed from the custody of her biological parents, she lived temporarily in foster care.

A therapist specializing in attachment disorders recommended that the adoptive parents share a bed with the girl to promote bonding. The sexual molestation reportedly began during the group sleeping sessions. Law enforcement officers are still investigating the therapist’s actions.

The teenage victim maintains she was coerced into sex at least once a week and was threatened with being sent back to the polygamy compound if she did not comply, according to the Daily Mail. The adoptive father also told the rape victim she would be forced to get married if she returned to the polygamous group, according to court documents.

The young woman says she endured the sexual abuse until she left for college two years ago. A request by the defendant for a Special Sexual Offender Sentencing Alternative was denied by Superior Court Judge Ellen Fair.