Child-raping cult leader Warren Jeffs remains in critical but stable condition at a Texas hospital after starving himself in prison, where he's currently serving a life sentence for sexually assaulting two underage followers of his breakaway sect of the Mormon Church. He's still expected to make a full recovery, Texas prison officials tell New Times...again.
The reason Texas prison officials want to reiterate the fact that Jeffs isn't knockin' on death's door is because ABC News' rumor department yesterday ran with the yarn that he was in a coma and not expected to survive. It cites anonymous sources close to Jeffs as the source of the information.
Last night, the Associated Press ran with a similar tale -- that Jeffs was in a medically induced coma but expected to pull through.
Word of Jeffs' impending demise has since run wild on the interwebs, with even the Washington Post, the Huffington Post, and various other media outlets jumping on board, citing the AP's story.
Again, we regret to inform anyone who wishes nothing but the worst for the cult leader, but Jeffs is gonna be just fine.
"Mr. King, Mr. Jeffs is not in a medically induced
coma. He is in critical, but stable condition. He is responsive and expected
to make a full recovery," Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Michelle Lyons tells New Times...again.
Another TDCJ official, Jason Clark, goes further, saying "Jeffs
remains hospitalized in Tyler. He remains in critical but stable
condition. He is not in a coma. He is somewhat sedated but responsive at
this time."
Again, Fundamentalist Cult of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints leader Warren
Jeffs is not in a coma, he's not nearing death, and he's expected to be
just fine -- despite what big-time newsrooms' rumor departments have to
say about it.
The source of the rumor remains unknown -- Lyons says she's thinking it
was started by "someone in [Jeffs'] camp." It was likely started to
boost the street cred of the group's attention-starved "prophet."
Jeffs, as you're probably aware, is a pretty bad dude. See former New Times staffer John Dougherty's articles on the the
secretive, isolated polygamist Mormon communities that straddle the
Arizona-Utah border here.
If Jeffs dies, which he won't, we'll have the champagne ready let you know.
