system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
If polygamy is illegal in the U.S., how does the show 'Sister Wives' exist?

It's the same thing with that show on Discovery about people making moonshine. It seems like the authorities could find the people, but obviously they don't...but why?
gpt
Being lawfully married to more than one person at a time is disallowed everywhere in the U.S. But this only pertains to *lawful marriage.* You can engage in *holy matrimony* ('church wedding') with as many people as you want, and even beings and objects that are not people, if your church is up for that. A wedding (holy or not) by itself is not a legal marriage without a lawfully issued marriage certificate. And in some cases, even that might not be enough. For example, if you lawfully execute a second marriage in another state or county (because the first one would catch on before issuing you the license), that's *bigamy,* and the first result is that the second marriage is automatically annulled. In effect, you just can't do it, period.

But it's perfectly lawful to *treat other people as spouses even if they're not legally so,* so long as you don't extend that to any act that might constitute fraud. For example, you can claim only your lawful spouse as such on tax forms, or you're committing tax fraud.