Crime Library: Criminal Minds and Methods

Killing for God

Still Hiding

Despite the fact that the killers were jailed, many former cult members still live in fear. It's unclear who the new leader of the LeBaron cult is or whether that person intends to continue checking names off Ervil's hit list, but Rena Chynoweth isn't taking her chances.

She split up with Ervil when he was in jail for the Rulon murder, and that won her a place on his list. Twenty years later, she's still in hiding.

"During our five-year marriage and for many years afterward, I had to live with some ghastly memories," writes Chynoweth. "I killed a man in cold blood, acting on my husband's orders which he claimed were 'commands from God.' I spent a year and a half running from the law, five months in jail awaiting trial for murder, and many years afterward trying to block out my past."

Video cover: Prophet of Evil
Video cover: Prophet of Evil

Rena ends her book with a plea to her readers:

"These last remnants of Ervil LeBaron's flock are still a risk to the rest of society. They are the last ones who may still feel bound by his blood covenant that has claimed so many innocent lives. They have grown up around violence and violent teachings, and there is grave danger that they will pass these values on to their own children. I want the killing to stop. Only by finding those still out there and getting them the help they need can we stop the bloodshed. "

In her final paragraph, she asks readers who come into contact with the LeBaron children to please turn them in to the police.

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