Steve Christian
Steve Christian | |
|---|---|
| 1st Mayor of Pitcairn Islands | |
| In office 7 December 1999 – 8 November 2004 | |
| Preceded by | Jay Warren as Magistrate |
| Succeeded by | Brenda Christian |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 26 June 1951 Independent |
| Spouse | Olive Jal Brown (m. 1972) |
| Children |
|
| Parent(s) | Ivan Christian Verna Carlene Young |
| Relatives | Brenda Christian (sister) |
Steven Raymond Christian (born 26 June 1951,
Background and mayoralty
Christian is a
Public respect for Steve Christian's lineage gave him considerable influence long before he held political office, first as a member of the Island Council in 1976. He again served on the Council in 1982, and was briefly Chairman of the Internal Committee (considered the second-most influential political position on the island) in 1985. He was to hold this position again in 1991 and 1992, 1994 and 1995, and 1998 and 1999, when he was elected as the island's first mayor. The title was new but the office was not: the mayor had previously been known as the magistrate.
Christian was the
Sexual assault trial
In 2004, Steve Christian, along with six other men, was tried on charges of rape and child sexual abuse by the Pitcairn Supreme Court.[1][2][3] Over the course of the trial, it was alleged that Christian repeatedly raped or assaulted a number of island women, including his children, over a period of several years[4][5] – using the remoteness of the island and his position of power to coerce their silence. Christian denied all accusations of impropriety, but admitted having consensual sex with several of his children. Christian pleaded not guilty to all charges of rape and indecent assault, but on 24 October 2004, he was convicted of committing five rapes between 1964 and 1975 for which he was sentenced for three years.[5][6] He was acquitted of a sixth rape charge and of four indecent assault charges.
On 8 November 2004, Christian's sister Brenda,[7] the island's sole police officer, was elected by the Island Council to succeed him in an interim capacity, pending elections scheduled for 15 December, when Jay Warren, the acquitted former magistrate, was elected mayor.
Later life
Christian served as one of the two assessors during the trial of Mayor Mike Warren for child pornography charges. When Warren was found guilty in 2016, Christian reportedly reacted: "I know I did some bad things in the past but never anything like that sort of stuff."[8]
References
- ^ a b Fickling, David (26 October 2004). "Six found guilty in Pitcairn sex offences trial". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 2 July 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2011.
- ^ "Six guilty in Pitcairn sex trial". BBC News. 25 October 2004. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 29 November 2011.
- ^ "6 men convicted in Pitcairn trials". The New York Times. 24 October 2004. Archived from the original on 5 January 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2011.
- ProQuest 432877107.
- ^ a b Birkett, Dea (29 October 2004). "Island of Lost Girls". The New York Times. p. A.25. Archived from the original on 31 October 2014. Retrieved 15 September 2017.
- ^ "Six sentenced in Pitcairn abuse cases". NBC News. 25 October 2004. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
- ^ "Islander changes his plea to admit sex assaults". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
- ^ Marks, Kathy (11 March 2016). "Pitcairn in 'last chance saloon' after child abuse images case". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 13 August 2022. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
