The truth behind Rebecca Musser and how a single witness brought down polygamist leader Warren Jeffs

Rebecca Musser is central to the fall of Warren Jeffs, leader of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Her testimony helped secure convictions that removed Jeffs from power in Texas, where he received life plus 20 years for child sexual assault. According to NPR (2013), Musser was a key witness whose account opened the door to multiple prosecutions.

The case returns to television in a re-air of Dateline’s Unbreakable. The episode originally aired on May 8, 2020, and re-airs on Saturday, August 30, on Oxygen, at 3:00 am and 4:00 am. The broadcast features Musser’s interview about FLDS life with Keith Morrison.

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Rebecca Musser and the FLDS background

Raised in an FLDS family, Rebecca Musser attended Alta Academy, where Warren Jeffs served as principal. At 19, she was assigned to marry Rulon Jeffs, who was in his 80s at the time. NPR reported that this marriage placed her inside the inner circle of church leadership and exposed her to the group’s strict control over girls and women.

After Rulon Jeffs died in 2002, Warren Jeffs consolidated control. As reported by Oxygen, he pressed widows to remarry under new placements, moving fast to extend authority over families that had been tied to his father.

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Rebecca Musser leaves and cooperates with the investigators

Facing a new placement, Rebecca Musser chose to leave. Accounts describe a night escape from the guarded compound, followed by a move to Oregon, where she rebuilt daily life and began speaking with law enforcement. Oxygen has detailed how she later assisted investigators with FLDS records from the Yearning for Zion ranch in Texas.

Her cooperation was not a single appearance. NPR noted that Musser testified repeatedly and provided context that prosecutors used to map church practices to criminal counts, including the placement of underage girls into marriages.

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Rebecca Musser in court against Warren Jeffs

Rebecca Musser joined other witnesses as the state pursued rape-as-an-accomplice charges tied to coerced marriages in Utah in 2007. The following years brought the Texas prosecutions. According to NPR (2013), her testimony helped win convictions against 11 FLDS leaders, with Jeffs receiving a life sentence plus 20 years in Texas.

Jeffs received a life sentence plus 20 years in Texas (Image via Pixels)

Symbolic moments became part of the record. Oxygen reported that Musser arrived in court in a red dress, a color long banned inside the sect, while walking jurors through temple records, placement logs, and audio evidence seized in Texas. These materials, paired with witness accounts, formed the backbone of the state’s case.

The Witness Wore Red by Rebecca Musser (Image via Hachette Book Group)

The courtroom work extended beyond a single trial. As Deseret News recounted, Musser took the stand more than 20 times, explaining terms and customs so jurors could understand the meaning of documents and recorded instructions taken from the ranch.

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The Dateline story on Rebecca Musser re-airs Saturday, August 30, on Oxygen at 3:00 am and 4:00 am ET. Dateline NBC episodes, including Unbreakable, can be streamed on Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus, fuboTV, NBC, or for free with ads on The Roku Channel.

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