A Florida judge has sentenced former U.S. Virgin Islands Senator-At-Large Steven D. Payne Sr. to 25 years in prison for the sexual battery of a minor, according to court records released Friday.
Judge Meredith Charbula ordered Payne, 59, to a state prison Thursday until 2050 and labelled him a “sexual predator,” according to court records. He was given credit for his time in jail awaiting trial for the attack on the girl who was in his care.
The Orlando Police Department arrested Payne — a former chair of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security, Justice and Public Safety — in September 2023 on a Duval County warrant as he arrived on a flight from St. Thomas.
The warrant was for assaulting a girl between the ages of 12 and 18 sometime between Aug. 1, 2018, and Feb. 27, 2019, while Payne was “in a position of familial or custodial authority” of the child, according to court documents. Previous reports revealed that he had become the girl’s guardian after a living situation with previous caregivers deteriorated.
Following a three-day trial in October a Florida jury found him guilty of felony sexual battery after deliberating for three hours.
Once released, Payne will have to register as a sex offender and comply with other restrictions for a probationary period of 10 years. The former music teacher and school resource officer for the Virgin Islands Police Department will not be allowed within 1,000 feet of a school or other place where children gather, will have a 10 p.m. curfew, and be subject to warrantless searches, polygraph exams, electronic monitoring, and an HIV test. State officials will keep his DNA on file and monitor where he drives after release, according to court records.
Payne will also be barred from giving out candy on Halloween, dressing up like Santa Claus, an Easter bunny, or any other costume that may appeal to children without state approval. He has until Aug. 18, 2051 to pay $1,021 in court fees.
Claiming Payne was an otherwise model citizen, his attorneys had asked the court in Jacksonville, Florida, for a sentence less than the standard minimum of 19.75 years after his October 2025 conviction.
Prosecutors said Payne became the victim’s guardian around 2016 while she was living in the Virgin Islands. The girl moved to Florida after being displaced by Hurricane Irma. Payne had her move in with his sister in Jacksonville and attacked her the next day, Florida State Attorney Melissa Nelson said. Nelson said the girl was terrified during the incident. Another victim from the Virgin Islands testified Payne had attempted to sexually assault her in 2005.
There were other allegations of sexual misconduct against Payne, who was elected Senator-At-Large in 2018 and 2020. At least three women accused Payne of sexual misconduct, including sexual assault and workplace sexual harassment while he was a senator representing St. John. The 34th Legislature voted unanimously to expel Payne after a four-month investigation in 2022.
Payne sued and the Legislature spent nearly $100,000 successfully defending itself.
Payne and his attorneys made multiple attempts to delay sentencing. Most recently, Payne filed a motion himself, asking the court to throw out his conviction and conduct a new trial. He claimed “newly discovered” evidence proved he was with his sister registering the girl for school during a time pivotal to the case against him.
Judge Charbula turned down Payne’s request for a new trial Feb. 10, saying rules did not allow defendants who have legal counsel to file motions themselves.
Payne acknowledged the rule in a letter to the court but asked for an exception to defend his “constitutional rights” before sentencing. He did not explain why the motion was not filed by his attorney.
Attorneys for Payne had sought to delay sentencing several times, asking the court to move the date from Nov. 5, 2025 to Nov. 13 after filing a motion for a new trial. The date was pushed back again, to Dec. 10, after the motion was amended and eventually denied. The date was moved again in January after Payne claimed to have found “mitigating evidence.”
Of the 50 pages of new evidence Payne submitted, only one was not redacted in online court files. It appears to be the header of an email from an office assistant at a Jacksonville high school sent to the same address on Aug. 20, 2018. The subject line is “Scan from MX710” with a PDF attachment.
In 2020, the Source asked Senate candidates for their “top priority as a legislator.” Some said it was bringing down electricity prices; some were concerned with the Government Employees Retirement System’s solvency; others cited the territory’s financial outlook during the COVID-19 pandemic and worried if the public health system could meet the challenge.
Payne told the Source his “top priority as a legislator” was to act honorably.
“My top priority will be to ensure that my actions in representing the people as a legislator are always above board. Also, I will do everything in my power to ensure that I never dishonor the institution or the people of the Virgin Islands who I serve,” Payne said.
Payne is a former Virgin Islands Police officer, music teacher at Gomez Elementary, and school resource officer. He trained as a police officer in Tampa Bay, Florida, gaining a Law Enforcement Certificate in 1998.
As a write-in candidate in 2016, Payne said he loved working with young, vulnerable people.
“As a police officer with the Virgin Islands Police Department, Steve Payne founded the Juvenile Delinquency Prevention Program; where he could have more access to the youths regardless of their age or grade level,” he wrote. “His campaign for change and empowerment of the youths started at Gomez Elementary School, where he served as the Music Teacher. However, Payne realized that there was a special need for reaching and impacting the lives of the male students; therefore, he opened his band room to them outside of his normal classroom hours. This created a safe and positive outlet for them.”
Payne also credited himself with founding the Gomez Golden Stars, the Addelita Cancryn Marching Iguanas, the JDPP Marching Kings, the JDPP Jammerz, the Marching Cougars, and the Marching Gulls and the VI Avengerz.
