Debunking Polygamy Skeptics Claims (Re-broadcast Mark Tensmeyer)

Gospel Tangents Podcast

This is a rebroadcast of our 2022 interview with attorney & independent historian Mark Tensmeyer who will polygamy skeptics claims. We'll discuss contemporary evidence of Joseph Smith's polygamy. This is the entire interview that has never been published publicy before. Check out our conversation... Check here for more info on polygamy! https://gospeltangents.com/lds_theology/polygamy/ https://youtu.be/aspT2sfdEhI Copyright © 2024 Gospel Tangents All Rights Reserved Except for book reviews, no content may be reproduced without written permission. Examining Polygamy Skeptics Claims Introduction In a conversation with Denver Snuffer, he claimed that if we threw out all evidence after Joseph Smith died, there is little evidence Joseph practiced polygamy. While I’m sure that’s an appealing tactic of a defense attorney, is that something a judge would allow? I’m excited to introduce Mark Tensmeyer, an attorney from Texas and we’ll talk about rules of evidence. What exactly is hearsay evidence? Mark will explain. Check out our conversation…. Interview GT 01:03 Welcome to Gospel Tangents. I'm excited to have a person who's certified in law to talk about rules of evidence. Could you go ahead and tell us who you are and where you're calling from? Mark 01:16 I'm Mark Tensmeyer. I'm calling from San Antonio, Texas. GT 01:21 And you are a lawyer by trade? Mark 01:23 I am. Yes. GT 01:25 So, you have a good grasp of law. Now, I know Denver Snuffer is a lawyer, as well. So, we kind of have a little bit of a difference of opinion on whether Joseph was a monogamist or a polygamist. I decided to have Mark on here. We're going to try to settle that and talk about some of the common arguments of the "Joseph was a monogamist" crowd. I'm not going to claim to be unbiased on this. But I am going to try to be as fair as possible. I think you are going to do the same thing right, Mark? Mark 02:03 Right. I don't think anybody who approaches this is really unbiased, even if they might think they are. I think very few people, if anybody, is truly unbiased. But I like to think that people can come to conclusions based on evidence, regardless of whatever their personal bias might be. I have that much faith in the human intellect. GT 02:30 Alright. One of the things I'd like to start off with, especially given your law background, is, let's talk a little bit about rules of evidence. I know in my previous interview--and I know there are a lot of people that love to email me and say, "Hey, you've never talked to somebody who believes Joseph was a monogamist, which, number one, is not true. I've talked to Denver. I’ve also talked to Jim Vun Cannon. So, if you haven't seen those, go watch them, and you can hear their arguments firsthand. Mark 03:02 Yeah. GT 03:03 I gave him a fair hearing. But I know in Denver's case, and I wanted to talk about him, because he's a lawyer just like you, Mark. Mark 03:12 Right. GT 03:13 One of the things that Denver said that I'd really like to question you on is Denver went to Michael Quinn, and said, "Well, if we cut out all the evidence after Joseph Smith died, June 27, 1844, then there's not very much evidence that Joseph Smith was a polygamist." Personally, I think, if I was a defense lawyer, that's exactly what I would do. I try to throw out as much evidence, especially, of course, bad evidence that wasn't helping me, as possible. So, I think it's a great defense tactic. I don't know that a judge would necessarily buy that. Can you tell us about that? Mark 03:53 Yes, I can speak to that. First off, the legal rules of evidence ought to be seen in the context of the legal case. I mean, they don't necessarily apply to weighing and balancing evidence, like in history or in any other situation in real life. We have laws that govern what kind of evidence can be considered, but the law doesn't give us a lot of direction on how to weigh ...