Visitation hearing: The foster mother says the 5- and 7-year-old girls know too much for their age
By Brooke Adams
The Salt Lake Tribune
Salt Lake Tribune
A foster mother caring for some of polygamist John Daniel Kingston's children told a 3rd District Court judge Wednesday that some of the youngest children have displayed sexual knowledge inappropriate for their age. This e-mail was initiated by machine [10.148.8.5] at IP [10.148.8.5].
At the hearing on whether to let Kingston resume weekly supervised visits with his children, Penny Hayes said two girls, ages 7 and 5, frequently masturbate. She said when a female pediatrician attempted to conduct a vaginal exam of the older girl, the child said, "Only the hand of God touches down there."
Hayes, who has had four of Kingston's children in her home for seven weeks, said the girl had told her she usually felt the hand of God when she prayed with her father. However, no one on Wednesday outright accused Kingston of sexually abusing the children.
"I have yet to find out what the 'hand of God' is," said Hayes. She said the children would pray while lying flat on their backs, legs spread apart.
Questioned by Kingston's attorney Daniel Irvin, Hayes acknowledged that the older girl developed a vaginal and urinary tract infection four weeks after she arrived in her home.
After the hearing, when asked by media if he had abused the children, Kingston said, "Absolutely not."
Hayes' testimony provided a new twist in the child welfare case involving 11 children of Kingston and Heidi Mattingly Foster, one of the 14 women with whom he has children. Ten of the couple's 11 children are in state custody; only a 6-month-old infant remains with Foster. The family landed in court last February after a dispute between the parents and their two oldest daughters over ear piercing.
Third District Juvenile Judge Andrew Valdez suspended Kingston's visits on Nov. 22 after a Division of Child and Family Services caseworker claimed they distressed the children and that Kingston was trying to prejudice them against the state.
Some have taken to referring to the case as the "Kingston pi–ata" - "every time you smack it, new stuff comes out." Wednesday's hearing proved the point.
Valdez revealed he canceled a Dec. 8 hearing on Kingston's visitation for security reasons after Ethan Tucker, Kingston's half brother, was found outside the courthouse taking photographs of the judge's office window.
Tucker also was questioned by court security officers after he was spotted photographing the building in the early morning on Oct. 28.
The Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office is investigating the incidents.
During Wednesday's hearing, DCFS caseworkers Curtis Giles and Boyd Madsen recounted visits during which Kingston told his children they were being persecuted because of their beliefs, comments they considered inappropriate. Giles also said he learned about 10 days ago that the two youngest girls were acting out sexually.
Hayes said she and her husband became licensed foster parents six months ago. They have their four children, ages 18 to 25, living at home, along with two grandchildren. About 14 children attend a preschool/day-care center Hayes operates in her home.
She said the Kingston children initially refused to interact with the other children and described the two youngest as scared, clingy and emotional; she later said that is common behavior for children in such a situation.
The children, who range in age from 2 to 7, all have had bed-wetting problems that get worse before and after visits with both Kingston and Foster, Hayes said. On the day of one of Kingston's visits, the 4-year-old also soiled his pants three times.
The children often become aggressive before and after visits with their parents, Hayes said, but she also acknowledged they have been angry with her at times.
Hayes said the children often ask when they will be able to go home, and consider many things in her home "evil" and "bad."
The 4-year-old told Hayes she was "Satan's whore" because she wears jewelry and can no longer have children, while his 7-year-old sister remarked that jewelry "is what broke our family up," she said.
Under questioning from Irvin, Hayes acknowledged Kingston's 9-year-old son, who sometimes visits and whom she described as "rude and crude," had called her "Satan's whore" and that the younger boy may have picked it up from him instead of from his father.
The hearing will continue on Jan. 12.