Debunking Polygamy Skeptics Claims (Re-broadcast Mark Tensmeyer)

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...



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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.