Jeffs has pursued that goal through unyielding standards and swift repercussions for those who don't measure up in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a polygamous sect of about 6,000.
The toll? Hundreds of teens displaced from their homes in Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., home base of the FLDS - some for such minor infractions as talking to girls and a preference for short-sleeved shirts. Hundreds of men accused of unspecified sins forced to abandon their homes, wives and children, who were subsequently assigned to more stalwart followers.
And this, too: A church whose practices and operations are the target of investigations in several states and must be described as besieged.
Through it all, Jeffs has refused to offer any defense and many of those subjected to his judgments also have kept silent.
Jeffs, 50, is tall and gangly, his most noted features a hypnotic manner of speaking and a keen intellect. He is the second oldest son of Merilyn Steed, the fourth of his father Rulon's seven wives. Jeffs has 65 full and half siblings.
After Jeffs graduated with honors from Jordan High School in 1973, he found a pathway to power: Serving first as a teacher and then as principal of Alta Academy, the private school located in his father's compound near Little Cottonwood Canyon.
It was at Alta Academy that Jeffs began to inculcate children with teachings - and through recordings, their parents - on what it takes to be deemed worthy. The key message: "Perfect obedience produces perfect faith, which produces perfect people."
Imperfection, whether a bad grade or rambunctious behavior, was quickly corrected with a paddling or suspension.
"He thrived off students' fear," said a woman who attended the school and is related to Jeffs. "He was always telling us the consequences we'd have to pay for this and that."
As FLDS leader, Jeffs has operated much the same way, ordering individuals to repent from afar. He is said to refer to these "handlings" as "acts of love" which provide an opportunity to suffer through hell now rather than in the hereafter.
Despite the seeming harshness of his faith, the majority of Jeffs' followers remain devoted to him and his 19th-century version of Mormonism.
He is seen, according to sources, as a modern-day John Taylor, the third president of the mainstream Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who spent two years in hiding to avoid prosecution for polygamy.
During his time on the run, Jeffs oversaw construction of outposts in Nevada, Colorado, South Dakota and Eldorado, Texas, where a gleaming limestone temple stands as a testament to his kingdom building.
brooke@sltrib.com
