Stephen Dawson, the former bassist of heavy metal band Saxon, was charged with and found guilty of four counts of indecent assault of a child under fourteen years old on March 21. On Thursday, April 11, a judge at Sheffield Crown Court sentenced the British retired rocker to six years in prison. Dawson, 72, repeatedly abused a six-year-old girl during the 1990s.
The detective in charge of Dawson's case, Detective Constable Robert Heath, said that the disgraced bassist "thought he had got away with committing these horrific crimes against a young, vulnerable victim 30 years ago."
Heath continued, saying that Dawson's victim had "shown extraordinary strength through coming forward and throughout the course of the investigation." He attributed her courage as being what's now led to "Dawson spending a number of years in prison."
Heath condemned Dawson while uplifting the survivor, who remains unnamed.
"It is clear that his evil acts have remained with her throughout her life, and I hope this sentence goes some way to allowing her to move on from these traumatic events," he said.
Dawson was a founding member of Saxon, which came together in 1975. The group's original members are Dawson, Graham Oliver, John Walker, Biff Byford and Paul Quinn. The group began as two separate bands, S.O.B. and Coast, before blending together to become Son of a Bitch, which quickly became Saxon. Dawson stayed with the band from its founding year until 1986, when he was "dismissed" from the group amid conflicts and arguments.
Heath and his department hope that Dawson's sentencing will be a promising sign for victims looking to come forward about previous sexual offenses.
He said, "We hope this provides some encouragement that if you have been subjected to any offence, no matter how long ago it happened, to come forward and report it to us."
He emphasized that the department is "here to listen, investigate and bring the perpetrators before courts."
Saxon peaked during the 1980s, when the group had eight albums in the Top 40 on the U.K. charts. The band has sold over 23 million records globally. Save for lead vocalist Bliff Byford, Saxon is composed of entirely new members. Byford briefly took up the bass when Dawson left the band, which can be heard on their eighth studio album, Rock the Nations.
Dawson and guitarist Oliver reunited a duo after the latter left Saxon in 1995, peerforming as "Oliver/Dawson Saxon" until 2021. Dawson's only solo album effort was 2002's Pandemonium Circus.
Dawson was also widely noted as the inspiration for fictional bassist Derek Smalls in the rock mockumentary, This is Spinal Tap.
Saxon released their 24th album, Hell, Fire and Damnation, was released on January 19. The band recently wrapped the European leg of the Metal Masters 2024 Tour with Judas Priest and Uriah Heep. They will begin the Saxon and Uriah Heep: Hell, Fire & Chaos tour on April 23. The tour will take the band across the United States through early June.
