Hulu’s newest offering Under the Banner of Heaven streamed on 28 April 2022. The show is an adaptation of Jon Krakauer’s 2003 true-crime bestseller of the same name about the gruesome killings of Brenda Wright Lafferty (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and her baby daughter, which shocked a quiet Mormon town in the 1980s.
The show, like the book, delves into the founding of the Church of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) by Joseph Smith in 1830, looking to make sense of the double murder. It soon becomes clear that the rise of fundamentalism in Mormonism, which Krakauer called “the quintessential American religion,” is more dangerous than anyone imagined.
Under the Banner of Heaven was created by Dustin Lance Black (Milk), who was brought up in the Mormon church. Over the course of seven episodes, he wanted to explore “just how patriarchal the church had been, and in many ways still was,” he told Vanity Fair before the show’s premiere. “And how such an absolute patriarchal structure threatens the safety of many women”.
On 24 July 1984, Brenda was found dead by her Allen on the floor of their suburban Utah home. Her throat was slashed after having been choked by the cord of a vacuum, according to a 2004 report from the Deseret News, a subsidiary of the Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the LDS Church.
Allen and Brenda’s 15-month-old daughter was also brutally killed in the attack that took place on Pioneer Day, a holiday commemorating the arrival of Latter-day Saint pioneers in Salt Lake City, Utah.
They were killed by his eldest brother Ron Lafferty, who was a self-proclaimed prophet. Ron and Dan, always had trouble tension with Allen’s wife Brenda because she challenged their views on Polygamy. Ron later claimed that he had received a revelation from God to kill his sister-in-law Brenda and her 15-month-old daughter Erica because of her resistance to his fundamentalist belief in polygamy.
During a court appearance, Allen said that Ron had told him a number of months prior to the killings that God had commanded that Brenda and Erica be “removed”.
Meet Allen Lafferty, Brenda Lafferty Husband
Brenda Lafferty was the youngest son of eight children born to Watson Leroy Lafferty and Claudine Jones Lafferty. His parents married on 6 June 1940 in the Salt Lake LDS Temple. Allen came from a prominent Utah Mormon family known for their strong values.
Allen Lafferty married his wife Brenda Lafferty in the early 1980s. Together they had an infant daughter named Erica. His wife was dedicated to Allen, their daughter, as well as the church.
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Watson Leroy Lafferty
By profession, Watson was a Doctor of a chiropractor. He was born in Raymond, Alberta, Canada to Charles Lafferty and Myrtle Louise Lafferty. He attended Canadian schools and served in the U.S. Navy in World War II. He had attended the University of Utah, Utah State University, and Saint Ambrose College in Iowa.
Moreover, he graduated from the Palmer Chiropractic College in Davenport in 1956. He practiced as a chiropractor for 16 years in Payson. Later, in 1972, he moved to Provo, Utah.
Watson was a strict disciplinarian who occasionally aimed his quiet fury at his wife and pets. He killed the family dog with a baseball bat after a fight with his wife. Their father had planted the seeds of paranoia, rebellion, and fanaticism. He instilled in his sons a skepticism of traditional medicine and the federal government.
Watson also went to extremes with his religious convictions, telling one of his sons that if he unintentionally wounded himself in the stomach with an arrow, he would have to suffer till the next morning for breaking the Sabbath.
He died on 10 September 1983 at the age of 68 because of diabetes.
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Claudine Jones Lafferty
Allen’s mother Claudine was the 10th of 11 children born to Calvin Sparks and Christina Elizabeth Peterson Jones in Salt Lake City, Utah. She attended South High School and Ex-cel-cis Beauty School graduating in 1937. She worked as a cosmetologist for over 70 years making many life-long friends.
Claudine served in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints as the Jr. Sunday School Coordinator, Relief Society President, and many other callings including the secretary in her ward Young Women Presidency at age 84 and in the Relief Society Presidency in her 90’s.
Claudine died on 28 January 2016 at the age of 96. At the time of her death, she had 60 grandchildren, 156 great-grandchildren, and 14 great-great-grandchildren.
Where Is Allen Lafferty Today?
Allen Lafferty (apparently) created a new family with his new partner after the deaths of Brenda and Erica. He is married to his new wife Heidi M Lafferty. They also appeared on Heidi’s YouTube channel talking about the Temple Open House video.
In 1991, speaking with Deseret News, Allen’s mother-in-law LaRae shared that he had re-married and she lost touch with him in circa 1987. Since he married Heidi Lafferty in 2016, his marriage with Heidi is his third. There is no information on his second wife.
The pair have made their home in Saratoga Springs, Utah, as of 2015. Allen was last seen in Los Angeles in 2015, where he was thought to be working for a Hollywood production business.
After abandoning his job in LA, he eventually decided to return to his family in Utah. The couple appears to be members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Allen talked about going to the temple on a regular basis in 2015, especially when confronting personal or familial issues with his spouse.
Allen Lafferty Age
Born on 5 December 1957, Allen Lafferty is 64 years old as of 29 April 2022.
Allen Lafferty Job
According to LinkedIn, Allen Lafferty has been working as an independent filmmaker at West 73 Films since 1987. Starting from August 2010, he is working as a lifestyle coach, mentor, and motivational speaker at Wellness Essentials LLC/Limitless Mentoring.
He writes in his LinkedIn bio, “As a Lifestyle Coach/ Mentor, I teach and empower motivated people with lifestyle skills to balance their lives. With a healthy mind, body, and spirit, my students experience better incomes, better relationships, and more productive results in all areas of their lives. I am, in essence, an onramp to the superhighway that gets them above the chaos of life and leads them to the life of their dreams. When I get in front of driven people, they move! They become super-achievers, efficiently reaching goals and dreams that have eluded them in the past that now, are only stepping stones to the life they are meant to live”.
Allen graduated from Utah Valley University in 1982 studying Health and Wellness.
Related FAQs
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Where Does Allen Lafferty Live Now? Is He Still In Utah?
Allen Lafferty is currently living in Saratoga Springs, Utah. Yes, he appears to be still living in Utah. He is also on Facebook (@allen.p.lafferty).
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Who Plays Allen Lafferty On Hulu’s Under The Banner Of Heaven?
Actor Billy Howle played Allen Lafferty on Hulu’s Under The Banner Of Heaven.
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