Mormon sex in chains case
Encyclopedia
The Mormon sex in chains case was a sex scandal involving a Mormon
missionary
in England
during 1977.
, Surrey
, after he was allegedly abducted from the steps of a meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A few days later a freed Anderson made a report to the police that he had been abducted, driven to Devon
, and imprisoned against his will, chained to a bed in a cottage
, where he alleged that Joyce Bernann McKinney (b. August 1949), a former Miss Wyoming World
had abducted, attempted to seduce, and then raped him. The case became known by many sobriquet
s, including "The Mormon sex in chains case" and "The Case of the Manacled Mormon."
for a court appearance, she held a notice up at the window of the police vehicle saying, "Kirk left with me willingly!" Press reports and McKinney's lawyer refer to the substantial size differential between McKinney, described as slightly built, and Anderson, described as substantially larger.
Along with Keith May, her alleged co-conspirator, McKinney jumped bail
and fled the country. On 18 July 1979, they were both arrested in the United States by the FBI
on charges of making false statements in order to obtain passports. They both received suspended sentences.
No extradition
proceedings were instituted by Britain, and the English court sentenced McKinney in her absence to a year in jail. Under the then-Sexual Offences Act 1956
, due to the victim's gender, there was no crime of rape committed, though indecent assault
of a man applied.
attempted to devalue the Mirrors reports by advertising itself as "The paper without Joyce McKinney."
Brian Whitaker observes that the case provided "light relief" for the newspaper reading public, from more serious stories about politicians. Roger Wilkes states that the coverage of the case "cheered Britain up no end." A Church of Scotland
working party on obscenity
in 1979 observed the "gusto" with which newspapers covered and followed the case, noting the accompaniment of the coverage by "the kind of illustration which a decade ago would have been under plain sealed cover."
The coverage was extensive in part because the case was considered so anomalous, involving as it did the issue of rape of a man by a woman
. Backhouse and Cohen reported in 1978 that many men, privately, expressed their disbelief of such a possibility.
The case was documented in Joyce McKinney and the Manacled Mormon, a book by Anthony Delano in 1978, who based his work on assembled Daily Mirror coverage.
In 2008 "Bernann McKinney" appeared in the media after having her pet dog cloned
in Korea
. Journalists have attempted to tie the two incidents together in articles either noting or declaring some facial similarity between "Bernann McKinney" and Joyce Bernann McKinney. Some reports considered the two to be the same person, and some reports carried Bernann McKinney's denial that she is the 1977 convicted sex offender. The International Herald Tribune
(and other publications) carried an admission by McKinney that she is the person named in the 1977 case. The revival of interest in the story led the documentary filmmaker Errol Morris
to produce his film, Tabloid (2010)
, based on the media sensation surrounding the story.
Anderson is now a real estate agent, and shies away from publicity. McKinney is reported to now use a wheelchair for mobility, and lives in Newland
, in the western North Carolina
mountains. Keith May died in 2004.
Mormon
The term Mormon most commonly denotes an adherent, practitioner, follower, or constituent of Mormonism, which is the largest branch of the Latter Day Saint movement in restorationist Christianity...
missionary
Missionary (LDS Church)
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is one of the most active modern practitioners of missionary work, with over 52,000 full-time missionaries worldwide, as of the end of 2010...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
during 1977.
Incident
A young Mormon missionary named Kirk Anderson went missing in 1977, in EwellEwell
Ewell is a village in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, close to the southern boundary of Greater London. It is located 14 miles south-south-west of Charing Cross and forms part of the suburbia that surrounds Greater London. Despite its growing population it is still referred to as a...
, Surrey
Surrey
Surrey is a county in the South East of England and is one of the Home Counties. The county borders Greater London, Kent, East Sussex, West Sussex, Hampshire and Berkshire. The historic county town is Guildford. Surrey County Council sits at Kingston upon Thames, although this has been part of...
, after he was allegedly abducted from the steps of a meetinghouse of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A few days later a freed Anderson made a report to the police that he had been abducted, driven to Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, and imprisoned against his will, chained to a bed in a cottage
Cottage
__toc__In modern usage, a cottage is usually a modest, often cozy dwelling, typically in a rural or semi-rural location. However there are cottage-style dwellings in cities, and in places such as Canada the term exists with no connotations of size at all...
, where he alleged that Joyce Bernann McKinney (b. August 1949), a former Miss Wyoming World
Miss World
The Miss World pageant is the oldest surviving major international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951...
had abducted, attempted to seduce, and then raped him. The case became known by many sobriquet
Sobriquet
A sobriquet is a nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. It is usually a familiar name, distinct from a pseudonym assumed as a disguise, but a nickname which is familiar enough such that it can be used in place of a real name without the need of explanation...
s, including "The Mormon sex in chains case" and "The Case of the Manacled Mormon."
Judicial proceedings
McKinney was arrested on September 19 1977 and charged but vigorously denied the charges. While being taken to EpsomEpsom
Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England. Small parts of Epsom are in the Borough of Reigate and Banstead. The town is located south-south-west of Charing Cross, within the Greater London Urban Area. The town lies on the chalk downland of Epsom Downs.-History:Epsom lies...
for a court appearance, she held a notice up at the window of the police vehicle saying, "Kirk left with me willingly!" Press reports and McKinney's lawyer refer to the substantial size differential between McKinney, described as slightly built, and Anderson, described as substantially larger.
Along with Keith May, her alleged co-conspirator, McKinney jumped bail
Bail
Traditionally, bail is some form of property deposited or pledged to a court to persuade it to release a suspect from jail, on the understanding that the suspect will return for trial or forfeit the bail...
and fled the country. On 18 July 1979, they were both arrested in the United States by the FBI
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
on charges of making false statements in order to obtain passports. They both received suspended sentences.
No extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
proceedings were instituted by Britain, and the English court sentenced McKinney in her absence to a year in jail. Under the then-Sexual Offences Act 1956
Sexual Offences Act 1956
The Sexual Offences Act 1956 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that consolidated the English criminal law relating to sexual offences between 1957 and 2004. It was mostly repealed by the Sexual Offences Act 2003 which replaced it, but sections 33 to 37 still survive. The 2003 Act...
, due to the victim's gender, there was no crime of rape committed, though indecent assault
Indecent assault
Indecent assault is an offence of aggravated assault in many jurisdictions. It is characterised as a sex crime.Indecent assault was an offence in England and Wales under sections 14 and 15 the Sexual Offences Act 1956...
of a man applied.
Coverage in the media
The coverage in British newspapers in the final months of 1977 was extensive and highly prominent. Some newspapers sought to obtain "scoops" on the story, and to undermine each other as they managed to obtain and publish exclusive information. For example, the Daily Mirror researched McKinney's past and reported over several days that she had been a nude model. The Daily MailDaily Mail
The Daily Mail is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper owned by the Daily Mail and General Trust. First published in 1896 by Lord Northcliffe, it is the United Kingdom's second biggest-selling daily newspaper after The Sun. Its sister paper The Mail on Sunday was launched in 1982...
attempted to devalue the Mirrors reports by advertising itself as "The paper without Joyce McKinney."
Brian Whitaker observes that the case provided "light relief" for the newspaper reading public, from more serious stories about politicians. Roger Wilkes states that the coverage of the case "cheered Britain up no end." A Church of Scotland
Church of Scotland
The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....
working party on obscenity
Obscenity
An obscenity is any statement or act which strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time, is a profanity, or is otherwise taboo, indecent, abhorrent, or disgusting, or is especially inauspicious...
in 1979 observed the "gusto" with which newspapers covered and followed the case, noting the accompaniment of the coverage by "the kind of illustration which a decade ago would have been under plain sealed cover."
The coverage was extensive in part because the case was considered so anomalous, involving as it did the issue of rape of a man by a woman
Rape by gender
This article classifies types of rape by the sex of both the rapist and the victim. The scope of the article includes both rape and sexual violence more generally....
. Backhouse and Cohen reported in 1978 that many men, privately, expressed their disbelief of such a possibility.
The case was documented in Joyce McKinney and the Manacled Mormon, a book by Anthony Delano in 1978, who based his work on assembled Daily Mirror coverage.
Later developments
In 1984 McKinney was again the subject of police action for allegedly stalking Anderson at his workplace, though he was now married with children.In 2008 "Bernann McKinney" appeared in the media after having her pet dog cloned
Cloning
Cloning in biology is the process of producing similar populations of genetically identical individuals that occurs in nature when organisms such as bacteria, insects or plants reproduce asexually. Cloning in biotechnology refers to processes used to create copies of DNA fragments , cells , or...
in Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
. Journalists have attempted to tie the two incidents together in articles either noting or declaring some facial similarity between "Bernann McKinney" and Joyce Bernann McKinney. Some reports considered the two to be the same person, and some reports carried Bernann McKinney's denial that she is the 1977 convicted sex offender. The International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune
The International Herald Tribune is a widely read English language international newspaper. It combines the resources of its own correspondents with those of The New York Times and is printed at 38 sites throughout the world, for sale in more than 160 countries and territories...
(and other publications) carried an admission by McKinney that she is the person named in the 1977 case. The revival of interest in the story led the documentary filmmaker Errol Morris
Errol Morris
Errol Mark Morris is an American director. In 2003, The Guardian put him seventh in its list of the world's 40 best directors. Also in 2003, his film The Fog of War: Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.-Early life and...
to produce his film, Tabloid (2010)
Tabloid (film)
Tabloid is an American documentary film by Errol Morris. The film tells the story of Joyce McKinney, a former Miss Wyoming, who was accused of kidnaping and raping Kirk Anderson, an American Mormon missionary. The case became a major tabloid story and a battle between The Daily Mirror and The...
, based on the media sensation surrounding the story.
Anderson is now a real estate agent, and shies away from publicity. McKinney is reported to now use a wheelchair for mobility, and lives in Newland
Newland, North Carolina
Newland is a town in Avery County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 704 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Avery County. Before its founding, the area was known as Old Fields or Old Fields of Toe. In 1911 it was renamed Newland, after North Carolina Lieutenant Governor...
, in the western North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
mountains. Keith May died in 2004.