District Attorney Collin Sims reports that on October 24, 2024, a St. Tammany Parish jury found 37-year-old Steven Harden of Pearl River guilty of molestation of a juvenile and computer-aided solicitation of a minor.  The jury deliberated less than an hour before returning its guilty verdict.

Assistant District Attorneys Angelina Valuri and Iain Dover presented the case to the jury, with Judge William H. Burris presiding over the three-day trial.  Lt. Jayson Germann with the Pearl River Police Department was responsible for the investigation.

According to testimony from the trial, a young teen in Pearl River alerted her aunt in October 2021 via Instagram Messenger that her mother’s live-in boyfriend, Steven Harden, was coercing her into disrobing in front of him.

The girl told her aunt she considered asking for help from a family friend who worked in law enforcement but was hesitant.  The aunt responded to the teen that she must tell the family friend/police officer “exactly what you just told me” and “tell her NOW!!”  The teen then contacted the family friend/police officer via Instagram Messenger.  The teen provided additional details to the family friend/police officer, who reacted with appropriate concern.

The teen said she had informed her mother the first time it occurred, but her mother did not believe her, so she was reluctant to seek help from her mother again.  The family friend/police officer immediately notified the proper authorities, resulting in the Pearl River Police Department opening an investigation.  During the investigation, the teen’s mother remained supportive of the defendant, saying she doubted her daughter’s claims because Harden and her daughter had an “excellent relationship.”

During the trial, the young girl took the witness stand and testified about what she had experienced.  She recounted how her cell phone had been taken away from her by her mother and Harden as a form of discipline at one point.  While her mother was away, Harden told the teen that he would only return her phone to her if she removed her shirt and brassiere in his presence.  After coercing her into complying, Harden touched the girl’s exposed breasts with one hand while sexually touching himself with his other hand.

Later, Harden attempted to coerce the teen into repeating this behavior.  In addition, he resorted to using Snapchat to tell her he needed her to perform sexual acts on him to help “release some stress.”  The young girl also related to the jury how her bathroom door had no functioning lock, and the defendant sometimes barged in and pulled the shower curtain back to look at her as she showered.

Judge Burris has scheduled Harden’s sentencing for December 20th.  The penalty for the two charges is five to ten years in prison.