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KINGMAN, Ariz. (AP) -- A polygamist convicted of sex offenses linked to his marriage to a teenager has been sentenced to nine months in prison.
In a separate case, another member of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints pleaded no contest to child abuse.
David Bateman, 49, of Colorado City was sentenced Monday, nearly two months after he was convicted of conspiracy and sexual conduct with a minor.
Prosecutors said Bateman fathered a child with the 17-year-old girl, whom he had taken as a polygamous wife.
But she told Mohave County Judge James Chavez that she was not a victim. Midge Steed, now 22, described Bateman as a "loving husband."
Mohave County Attorney Matt Smith said Arizona law determines what constitutes a victim.
Bateman is a member of the FLDS, a polygamous sect on the Arizona-Utah border.
His trial was the third for Arizona polygamists accused of taking underage brides.
Vergel Jessop, 47, was charged with sexual conduct with a minor and conspiracy but pleaded no contest to child abuse Monday, a lesser charge. He will be placed on probation for three years under terms of a plea agreement, with no additional jail time.
He must register as a sex offender, according to court officials.
Two earlier trials ended with a conviction and an acquittal. Another case was dismissed when the defense proved the couple lived outside Mohave County. Three cases are pending.
The leader of the FLDS, Warren Jeffs, faces trial in Utah on two counts of rape as an accomplice. He is accused of coercing a 14-year-old girl to marry and have sex with an older cousin.
Jeffs, 51, has pleaded not guilty. He was on the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list when he was arrested Aug. 28 in a traffic stop north of Las Vegas.
(Copyright 2006 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
