A $130 million civil lawsuit claiming wrongful death and racketeering against author Rena Chynoweth, the 13th wife of polygamist cult leader Ervil LeBaron, opened in U.S. District Court Thursday.
Rulon Allred, a polygamist with seven wives, was shot in his Murray offices on May 10, 1977. Chynoweth was one of four defendants who was acquitted by a Utah jury of the murder in 1979. LeBaron received a life sentence for plotting the murder and died in prison in 1981.On page 207 of Chynoweth's book, "The Blood Covenant," which was released in May, the author admits she shot Allred seven times.
Allred's legal wife, Myrtle, and daughter, Dorothy Solomon, are suing Chynoweth, and Thursday's court action included a motion to freeze the earnings from the book while the lawsuit is in litigation. Although Utah has a law prohibiting criminals from profiting from their crimes, it doesn't apply to Chynoweth because she wasn't ever convicted.
Chynoweth's attorney, L.G. Cutler, has filed a motion to seal the case.