Criticism of Mormonism/Books/American Massacre/Chapter 13

Chapter 12

A FAIR Analysis of: Criticism of Mormonism/Books A work by author: Sally Denton

Chapter 14

Claims made in Chapter 13: "Cedar City, April 7, 1859"

Page	Claim	Response	Author's sources
190	According to "historian Polly Aird," the Parrish and Potter murders committed during the Mormon reformation were "the best documented case of killing for the sin of apostasy" and "involved the entire church reporting line from Brigham Young down."	Parrish-Potter murders Crime and violence in Utah	Polly Aird, "Escape from Zion: The United States Army Escort of Mormon Apostates, 1859," Nevada Historical Society Quarterly 44/3 (Fall 2001): 196-237.
190	The author mentions the "execution-style killing of six California emigrants."	Without a source or evidence, it is impossible to assess this claim. The burden of proof is on the author. Which immigrants? When? How killed?	No source provided.
190	The author mentions that "castration and murder of another apostate."	Castration in Utah	No source provided.
190	The author mentions "blood atonement killings by Danite Porter Rockwell."	Danites Danites in anti-Mormon polemic  [needs work]	No source provided.
193	The author claims that there was a "burgeoning traffic of apostates now fleeing Zion" because of the Mountain Meadows affair and that this was "the largest emigration up to that time, overshadowing even the California gold rush of 1852."		Aird, 197.
200	Paiute chiefs said that they were not there at the beginning of the massacre and only became involved "under written orders from Brigham Young."	Absurd claim: Paiute chiefs would have been unable to read any letter from Brigham Young, even if such had existed.[1]	U.S. House of Representatives, Utah and the Mormons, 17.

Endnotes

1. [note]  Robert D. Crockett, "The Denton Debacle (Review of: American Massacre: The Tragedy at Mountain Meadows, September 1857)," FARMS Review 16/1 (2004): 135–148. off-site