While papal coverage dominated religion news last week, the saga involving the Fundamentalist Church of Latter Day Saints continued. I'm still digging through all the recent updates and analyses, but I wonder what readers think of this headline:

Polygamist sect hearing in Texas descends into farce

Here's how the story, by the Associated Press' Michelle Roberts began:

A court hearing to decide the fate of the 416 children swept up in a raid on a West Texas polygamist sect descended into farce Thursday, with hundreds of lawyers in two packed buildings shouting objections and the judge struggling to maintain order.

The case - clearly one of the biggest, most convoluted child-custody hearings in U.S. history - presented an extraordinary spectacle: big-city lawyers in suits and mothers in 19th-century, pioneer-style dresses, all packed into a courtroom and a nearby auditorium connected by video.

She goes on to describe the hearing as a circus. The article is packed with tons of information even if it's a bit heavy on the adjectives. Still, I wonder if "farce" and "circus" are the best words to use. Assuming we still have some presumption of innocence for the accused, they might describe what they're going through as a tragedy.