Utah Judge Removed Over Polygamy

A judge with three wives was ordered removed from the bench by the Utah Supreme Court on Friday.

The court unanimously agreed with the findings of the state’s Judicial Conduct Commission, which recommended the removal of Judge Walter K. Steed for violating the state’s bigamy law.

Steed said he was disappointed with the decision.

“I had hoped that the court would see my case as an opportunity to correct the injustices that are caused by the criminalization of my religious beliefs and lifestyle,” Steed said in a statement.

Steed has served for 25 years on the Justice Court in the polygamist community of Hildale in southern Utah, where he ruled on misdemeanor crimes such as drunken driving and domestic violence cases.

The commission last year sought Steed’s removal from the bench after an investigation determined that he was a polygamist and had violated Utah’s bigamy law. Bigamy is a third-degree felony in Utah, punishable by as long as five years in prison and as much as $5,000 in fines.

“When the law is violated or ignored by those charged by society with the fair and impartial enforcement of the law, the stability of our society is placed at undue risk,” the court’s ruling said.

Steed, who also works as a truck driver, was paid a few hundred dollars monthly for serving in the part-time judicial position.

Utah Atty. Gen. Mark Shurtleff praised the court’s decision, saying someone breaking the law should not be in a judicial role.

Shurtleff had declined to prosecute Steed. He said his office intended to stick to its policy of only prosecuting bigamy cases that involved other crimes such as domestic violence or sex with minors.