Pitcairn sex convictions stand, court rules

Top L-R: Dennis Christian, Randy Christian, Steve Christian. Bottom L-R: Terry Young, Dave Brown, Len Brown.

The Pitcairn Supreme Court, sitting in Auckland, has rejected a bid from six islanders to have their convictions for sex offences against girls over-turned.

It rejected an application for a permanent stay of proceedings from the six men and said none of the grounds the men's lawyers advanced were valid.

Last year, the six men were convicted of rape and indecent assault charges against under-aged girls on the island over a 30-year period.

Two were given jail terms of up to six years and three were sentenced to home detention or community service.

The convictions and sentences could not be formally entered until after today's application for a stay of proceedings was known. The men's lawyers had argued in the Supreme Court at hearings last month that that they were unaware of English law prohibiting serious sexual offences.

Last year's court case on the remote islands attracted international interest.

Pitcairn mayor Steve Christian was found guilty of five rapes including that of a 12-year-old girl, was sentenced to three years jail.

His 31-year-old son Randy Christian, guilty of four rapes and five indecent assaults, was sentenced to six years.

Len Brown, 78, guilty of two rapes, was sentenced to two years, but was given leave to apply for home detention on the island.

His son Dave Brown, who pleaded guilty to indecent assaults, was ordered to perform 400 hours of community service and to attend counselling. Dennis Christian, Steve Christian's cousin, who pleaded guilty to indecent and sexual assaults, was ordered to perform 300 hours community service and attend counselling.

Terry Young, convicted of one rape and six indecent assaults, was sentenced to five years.

Pitcairn Island has a population of 47, most of them direct descendants of Fletcher Christian and his band of mutineers who took over the British naval ship Bounty in 1789.

The lawyers were due to talk to their clients on the island today via a satellite link-up and the court was to hear discussions from the men's lawyers on whether they would be granted bail or not.

The case is still due to go before the Privy Council in London either later this year or early next year on another appeal against Britain's jurisdiction over the island.

The court today rejected defence arguments that there had been an abuse of process at the men's trial on the remote Pacific island last year.

The 95-page decision rejected key defence arguments, which included that the men were not subject to British laws against serious sexual offences.

- NZPA, HERALD ONLINE STAFF