Not just 'dark' cult, a very sick, deranged, deluded and very, very misogynist Cult to say the very least.
Back when I 25 years old I dated a young lady who I did not know at the time was from Jehovah's Witnesses family.
We had only been out together twice, the first we merely held hands, the second, we went on a picnic on a very public beach.
It was the middle of the day on a Sunday, there were crowds of people around, women, children and men everywhere when she suddenly said to me, " Can we find somewhere where we can be alone, I want to have sex now so I can tell the Elders at my Church that I have had sex outside of marriage and they can punish me, then exclude me from being a member, I'm sick of being a Jehovah's Witness."
I thought twice about her 'request' and quietly told her, " I will NOT be used as your excuse to escape, that IS something YOU must do ALL by yourself."
I then packed up the picnic things, escorted her back home and never saw her again.

The parents usually feel the need to display the same level of revulsion as the elders. I'm sure it's fear of implication that could ruin their standing in the congregation. Loss of respect in the congregation leads to loss of position, friends and very often even employment.

@brentan Disgusting, typical that social services ignore religious abuse of children by their own parents and fucking priests.

According to Jehovah's Witnesses policies, the Parents of a Complainant ARE NOT permitted to sit in or partake in ANY enquiry/s involving the Council of Elders and cannot dispute the decisions or action taken as a result of that/those enquiries.

@Triphid
Well in my book the Parents of a Complainant, should then introduce the Council of Elders' bollocks to the business end of a steel toe capped boot.

@LenHazell53 I agree 110%.
The Jehovah's Witnesses are also well known in medical circles as those who will WILLING to place their own lives or that of a child at risk by REFUSING to allow a Life-Saving Blood Transfusion since their belief system states that it is a Form of Cannibalism.
Thankfully, here in Australia the A.M.A lobbied strongly and powerfully enough many decades ago to force the Government to enact a Law that over-rides their ridiculous twaddle and many a child and mother giving birth has been saved where they would died if not for getting a transfusion.
These days the Jehovah's Crazies have NO excuse to refuse since a Blood Substitute has been developed and is widely used in cases such as this.

This was from last night. I heard/saw of this case a few days ago but did not read the details. Last night Matt and Andre Torres, another lawyer, really broke down this case in a way that really goes a bit deeper into what can happen and how that "Judicial committee" can be some really bad precedent.

Hopefully people will learn and realize a religious 'court' is not a thing and definitely should not be used as a shield to further protect 'religions'.

Particularly when you think of Ferdinand and Isabella.

She was 14 and he was 18, here is a different source, the act itself by the church is abhorrent and despicable and I can't fathom how in the hell some might consider this torture as somethi8ng else.
[dailymail.co.uk]

it was prosecuted, see here: [dailymail.co.uk]

@Mofo1953 The only thing I noticed in the article from the defendant (church) is a claim that her case lacks any facts. Doesn't seem to name any individuals and if she was forced and captive why isn't it a criminal case? Could that also be due to lacking evidence? What she alleges is criminal behavior by individuals. Does Utah, unlike any other states, have a statute of limitations on kidnapping and torture?

This isn't beyond expectations for some self-righteous, programmed males in an organization like that but to have been an institutional practice? I know them too well to believe that. Individual men trying to use the group as cover for crime wouldn't be a surprise.

A criminal conviction would make the suit a 'piece of cake'. A cult-run state like Utah makes criminal prosecution for exploiting or demeaning of women, unfortunately less likely. Seems they'd have a chance with Federal because of kidnapping and civil rights violations.

@Silver1wun duh! what do you expect the defendant's lawyers will say? The arguments used by the court of appeals to deny her case were "because it 'requires an inquiry into the appropriateness of the church's conduct in applying a religious practice and therefore violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment.' Let's see what the Utah Supreme court says about this now. She was a minor and the rapist was an 18 year old adult, there is no excuse here and if this was other place in the normal world, the rapist and pedophile would have been convicted. But unfortunately she's in Utah, that place sucks mormon ass!

@Mofo1953 It does indeed...