Can the Mormons be blamed for Utah’s LGBT suicides?

(RENEE BRIGHT / KUER)

It was a controversial yet common refrain about suicide, Mormons and LGBT people in Utah, this time from daytime TV talk show host Ellen DeGeneres.

“The leading cause of death for Utah kids, ages 11-17, is suicide,” she said during an episode that aired last month. “Suicide in Utah has increased 141 percent because of the shame they feel from the Mormon Church.”