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Ruling against towns in religious discrimination case upheld

Phoenix • An appeals court has upheld a ruling that concluded two towns on the Arizona-Utah border had discriminated against people who weren’t members of a polygamous sect, rejecting an argument that a judge made an error in finding there was a conspiracy between the church and towns.

The ruling Monday by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals found there was enough evidence to show Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah, had conspired with sect members to advance the objectives of Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, a radical offshoot of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, which disavowed polygamy more than 100 years ago.