---

AP, via the International Herald Tribune, USA
Oct. 6, 2006
www.iht.com

---

ReligionNewsBlog.com • Item 16181 • Posted: Saturday October 7, 2006  

---

MIAMI — Yahweh Ben Yahweh, a former cult leader linked to nearly two dozen gruesome killings in the 1980s, is seeking immediate release from parole supervision so he can battle advanced cancer and “die with dignity,” his lawyers said Friday.

Yahweh, 70, is asking U.S. District Judge Marcia Cooke to order the federal Parole Commission to quickly make a decision on whether to terminate parole in his case. He lives in the Miami area.

“He is now unable to walk due to bone and nerve involvement by the cancer. His prognosis is extremely poor and death appears imminent,” his doctor, Wynne A. Steinsnyder, wrote in a letter dated Sept. 28 filed with the court.

Borb Hulon Mitchell Jr. in Oklahoma, he changed his name Yahweh, the Hebrew words for “God, son of God.” He served 11 years of an 18-year federal prison sentence for a racketeering conviction stemming from his role in up to 23 murders, some involving beheadings and severed ears and fingers.

Yahweh was once head of the Nation of Yahweh, boasting hundreds of followers who often dressed completely in white and who once won praise for rehabilitating blighted Miami neighborhoods. Yahweh, a self-proclaimed “Black Messiah,” preached a brand of racial and religious separatism for blacks and later was accused of sending close followers to kill “white devils” and bring back body parts as proof.

Yahweh was released from prison on parole on Sept. 26, 2001. His lawyers argue that under federal law his parole should be concluded because he has followed all the restrictions — including no contact with his former followers — and has not been involved in any criminal activity in the past five years.

“He is not a risk of flight. He is not a danger to the community. He is frail and he is dying,” said attorney Jayne Weintraub. “It’s time for the bars to be removed.”

The law gives the Parole Commission discretion on whether to end parole after five years — it is not automatic. A hearing officer is scheduled to consider the case on Oct. 19, which would be followed by a recommendation to the commission itself before a final decision is made.

“It’s an opportunity for the parolee to make a case as well as an opportunity for the commission to find out more,” said Tom Hutchison, the commission’s chief of staff.

But that could take weeks, if not months. Weintraub and co-counsel Steven Polotsky want the judge to accelerate the process, in part because Yahweh’s doctor says being on parole causes stress that is hampering his cancer treatment.

Beyond that, the lawyers say in court papers that Yahweh “is entitled to, and greatly desirous of, the simple dignity of being permitted to die a free man, not a parolee.”

Cooke did not indicate when she would rule but did order government attorneys to respond this week to Yahweh’s petition.

---

What You Can Do From Here

---

Read More Articles On These Topics Categories: Nation of Yahweh Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article Subscribe Religion News Blog RSS feed [What is this?] RSS by topic: Nation of Yahweh Read Another Article Previous entry: Self-proclaimed Messiah has four churches in Massachusetts Next entry: Exclusive Brethren Fanatics get public funds RNB Homepage with latest headlines Find Related Information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults Find Related Books Nation of Yahweh Most Popular Today Guyana’s Jonestown suicide site gets plaque Scientology practices ‘putting people at risk’ Recession: Muslim schools in UK under threat of closure 1-year prison term for man who participated in cyber attack on Church of Scientology Web sites Australian police take up complaints about Scientology Appeals court upholds removal of children from cult leader’s compound Born in U.S., a Radical Cleric Inspires Terror Scientology’s feet held to the fire in Australia: Struggle between a church and the state

---

Share This Article

---

To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:

• Post a link on your blog or website:
  
• Send in an email or IM:
  
• Post on a forum:
  

Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support.

Note: results are listed on another domain -- CounterCultSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.

Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs.

Note: results are listed on another domain -- ApologeticsSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.