The 4 O'Clock Murders

Readable, but not stunningly well-written. Occasional minor details are a bit off -- for instance, at one point Anderson misnames one of Verlan's wives as "Rhea" when he means to reference "Irene". Also, since the book was published in 1993, it's out of date regarding the current status of the various members of the LeBaron clan. Still, it's a valuable resource in understanding the specifics of what happened in that group. If the subject is of interest it's probably worth reading some of the memoirs associated with the LeBarons -- two of Verlan's wives (Ervil's sisters-in-law) wrote relevant memoirs: Irene Spencer's Shattered Dreams covers her life with the cult; her Cult Insanity specifically deals with Ervil and his issues; Susan Ray show more Schmidt's His Favorite Wife: Trapped in Polygamy covers both life with the cult, and the beginning of Ervil's reign of terror.

Note: One should compare The 4 O'Clock Murders / Scott Anderson (1993) with Cult Insanity / Irene Spencer (2009) and Prophet of Blood / Ben Bradlee & Dale Van Atta (1981), all of which cover the Lambs of God from their beginnings through their various murders in the 1970s. The 4 O'Clock Murders is largely derivative, and generally more superficial, with the material covered in Prophet of Blood -- that is, the beginnings of the cult through Ervil LeBaron's death. For the best journalistic coverage of that time (roughly through the end of the 1970s), it makes sense to read Prophet. Spencer fills in the exact same time period as Prophet of Blood, but with more personal detail and insight, and more of a sense of the role of polygamy in the Lambs of God and the Church of the Firstborn. To understand what happened with the cult after LeBaron's death, however, Anderson is important and is the only complete account. Spencer's book, written 16 years after Anderson's, unfortunately stops at the same time as Prophet of Blood -- with Ervil LeBaron's death. She updates Anderson only insofar as she updates the Ervil LeBaron offspring chart with updated suicides, murders, and imprisonments. (Grim.) show less

Synopsis: An informative novel about the creation of the polygamist cults which developed into the LeBaron family's competition for power. When Ervil LeBaron tells his followers that the cult now believes in "blood atonement" - the sacrifice of a non-believer's blood in return for a place in heaven - they follow his orders with a result of mass killings in both Mexico and the United States. Due to the killers' well thought-out plans, many of the murderers have still not been convicted today.
My Opinion: More of a factual, rather than emotional account of life in a polygamist cult. The precision of their murders and auto-theft business amazes me how, even today, they have not been brought down.

The 4 O'clock murders is about a fundementalist Morman cult in the 1980's who lived in Texas and Mexico. They were known as the "Morman Mafia" as they stole vehicles to support their "mission". They believed in"blood atonement" and no one stood in their way. They killed their followers, their brothers, their wives, their children if they felt they threatened by them. (The first 23 people listed under Characters in Common Knowledge were all killed.) The book gives you background in their beliefs, religion and how they were finally brought to justice.

I did read it in 2005 but only 120 pages. Then i got a bit tired. Maybe because I'd already read 2 true crime books about mormoms. Might try again.