The Nation - News from Jan. 21, 1988

Sporadic gunfire from a band of polygamists near Marion, Utah, punctuated the fifth day of a standoff with police, but they said they do not intend to return the shots or storm the stronghold. “We will not fire into the compound for fear of hurting children,” FBI Agent Dave Kohl said after 65 rounds were fired at police floodlights over a 14-hour period ending just before dawn. The 15-member clan, including nine children under 18, was led by Addam Swapp, 27, and Vickie Singer, 44, widow of polygamist John Singer. Singer was slain by lawmen trying to arrest him in 1979 following an 18-day siege of the same 2 1/2 -acre compound. The current standoff with up to 100 officers began Saturday, hours after a nearby Mormon Church chapel was bombed. Swapp reportedly has claimed responsibility for the explosion, calling it divine revenge for Singer’s death, and has refused since Saturday night to talk by telephone with police negotiators.