Pitcairn islanders' appeal cut short
An appeal by six Pitcairn islanders over their convictions for sex crimes was today cut short after judges overturned a key plank of their lawyers’ argument.
The hearing before the Privy Council had been due to last for two weeks but it ruled out a claim that British law did not apply on the tiny settlement.
A spokesman for the council’s judicial committee said today that it had now come to an end, just a day after it started.
The committee of five Law Lords, chaired by Lord Hoffmann, reserved judgment to a later date.
In March the islanders lost an earlier appeal over the offences on the Pacific island, populated by descendants of the HMS Bounty mutiny led by Fletcher Christian.
Pitcairn’s Court of Appeal, sitting in Auckland, New Zealand, rejected the argument that the British legal system under which they were convicted had not been ratified or approved by islanders.
Former Pitcairn Mayor Steve Christian and five others were convicted in October 2004 on charges including rape and indecent assault of mostly underage girls over a 40-year period, with four of the men facing prison terms.
