As we saw on TLC’s Sister Wives last season, the Brown family was under investigation in their native Utah for felony bigamy after they went public as a family with four wives, one doofus of a husband, and 17 kids. They moved to Las Vegas as a hectic and ill-thought-out temporary solution to the investigation, which of course ended up going nowhere with the Browns cleared of charges. Well now the Browns are suing the state of Utah, and the county from which they fled, in an attempt to overturn the bigamy laws there which make their particular living arrangement a felony:

Kody Brown and his four wives just want to live like any other family — free from the threat of being tossed in prison.

But in Utah, just claiming to have more than one wife is a third-degree felony punishable by a sentence of up to five years.

The polygamous family, stars of the TLC show “Sister Wives,” has sued Utah and the county they fled from, hoping to persuade a federal judge to overturn the state’s bigamy law as unconstitutional.

The case could potentially decriminalize a way of life for tens of thousands of Mormon fundamentalists practicing polygamy, most of whom live in Utah.

The state, meanwhile, has publicly said it won’t prosecute consenting adult polygamists unless there are other crimes involved, but insists the law doesn’t overreach.

“It is not protected under religious freedom because states have the right to regulate marriage,” said Paul Murphy, spokesman for Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff.

Utah County Attorney Jeff Buhman in May announced he closed his criminal investigation into the Browns and simultaneously adopted the same state policy. The county then moved to have the lawsuit dismissed, claiming the Browns no longer have standing since they aren’t subject to prosecution.

During a hearing Wednesday in federal court in Salt Lake City, a judge repeatedly asked state prosecutors why he shouldn’t allow the case to move forward.

U.S. District Judge Clark Waddoups said it appeared as if the state policy and the ensuing declaration by Utah County was “simply a ruse to avoid having the issue reviewed.”

“What’s the policy reason behind this … that would give assurances that similar prosecutions will not be pursued in the future?” Waddoups asked. “What about the next couple?”

Assistant Attorney General Jerrold Jensen, arguing on behalf of Utah County, said there is none, but noted there are at least 30,000 practicing polygamists in Utah.

“They are not being prosecuted,” Jensen said. “Utah County does not want to prosecute people for the practice of polygamy, period.”

Jensen could not say the threat of prosecution of other polygamous families had been entirely removed, but reiterated state policy.

“The plaintiffs here are not going to be prosecuted therefore the case is moot,” he said.

Earlier this year, Waddoups released Shurtleff and Gov. Gary Herbert from the case, citing the state policy that polygamists won’t be prosecuted for violating the bigamy law alone. He allowed the case to continue against the county because, at the time, prosecutors there had not made the same declaration.

The Browns’ attorney, Washington, D.C., constitutional law professor Jonathan Turley, argued Brown and his wives — Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn — remain victims and continue to live under the stigma of being considered felons.

They fled Utah last year and are now living in Nevada.

Turley also questioned both the state and county policies, noting neither is legally binding.

“It does not guarantee that the Browns or anyone else won’t be prosecuted,” Turley said Wednesday, adding that the policies are “clearly an effort to evade a ruling in this case.”

The judge said he would decide later whether to allow the case to continue.

Turley argues that under previous U.S. Supreme Court rulings, such as one that struck down Texas’ sodomy law, private intimate relationships between consenting adults are constitutionally protected.

While all states outlaw bigamy, some like Utah have laws that not only prohibit citizens from having more than one marriage license, but also make it illegal to even purport to be married to multiple partners. Utah’s bigamy statute even bans unmarried adult couples from living together and having a sexual relationship.

The Brown’s lawsuit doesn’t aim to challenge Utah’s right to refuse recognition of multiple licenses, nor are the Browns seeking them, Turley said.

[From TV.Yahoo.com]

I have mixed feelings about this. I think consenting adults should have the right to live together in these type of arrangements without fear of prosecution. I totally agree that it should be decriminalized. The Brown family has said that they support gay marriage, and that they see parallels in their situation with the fight for gay marriage rights. I think that’s a big leap. There’s a difference between two adults entering into a committed relationship and obtaining legal rights as a couple, and any number of adults trying to achieve those same rights as some kind of extended family. I don’t think they should have to worry about going to jail for it by any means, and that’s their goal with this lawsuit. They’re not asking for full marriage rights at all. The issue with the polygamous compounds in which young girls and boys are abused is an entirely different one.

Getting back to the Browns, I find Kody to be a total hypocrite. It’s fine for him to have four wives and counting, but when anyone dares question him about his wives taking other husbands he gets all indignant and worked up about it. In his feeble mind that’s entirely different and offensive to consider.

Also, I believe that the Browns should have stayed in Utah during the bigamy investigation and dealt with the situation there. Instead they picked up their 17 kids at the time, told them they couldn’t tell anyone they were leaving or say goodbye to their friends, and moved to Las Vegas. They needed the move as a plot point for their show of course, but at what cost to their kids? It all ended up turning out fine in Utah, but they’d had a taste of reality show fame and cash and Kody wanted to live in Vegas. Are they going to move back to Utah if they successfully overturn the bigamy laws there? I doubt it.

These photos are from 4-14-12 and 10-9-10. Credit: FameFlynet