As a vehement proponent of a fundamentalist approach to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Ron Lafferty exhibited dispositions for spiritual extremism throughout his life. Both he and his brother Dan were active members of the Utah-based religion, but they were excommunicated after Ron started insisting that he was a prophet who received orders from God himself. They joined up with the School of Prophets shortly thereafter, a polygamist cult that was more aligned with their radical persuasions. However, disapproval from Ron’s wife and her reluctance to accept his increasingly problematic lifestyle prompted her to file for divorce in early 1984, and she moved to Florida with their six children in an effort to distance them from Ron’s troubling influence (per The Salt Lake Tribune).

Ron Lafferty blamed the divorce on four people, including Brenda and Erica Lafferty — he believed the little girl would “grow up to be just as despicable as her mother.” The wife of their younger brother, Allen, Brenda suggested that Ron and Dan were unstable and barred Allen from joining the School of Prophets. This only accelerated Ron’s resentment, and after a perceived revelation from a higher being, he determined that Brenda, Erica, and two other individuals whom he deemed “impure” needed to be removed “in rapid succession” (via The Salt Lake Tribune).