A federal trial against two polygamous towns in Utah and Arizona has resumed with testimony about how sect leader Warren Jeffs still wields influence over the neighboring communities from his Texas prison cell.
An FBI agent and prison mailroom administrator testified Monday before the case ended for the day because of an issue with a juror.
The mailroom employee described the huge volume of letters that Jeffs still gets and how he has tried to send coded messages to his followers. Jennifer Smith says Jeffs would receive 1,000 to 2,000 letters per day when he was first locked up.
Jeffs is serving a life term after being convicted in 2011 of sexually assaulting underage girls he considered brides.
A mayor from the communities sent him a letter in 2012 saying a police chief was nearing retirement and seeking advice from Jeffs on a replacement.