Court Orders Lesser Sentence in Dana Point Beach Slaying : Appellate ruling: Panel says Christian Steffens, then 16, did not possess the malice needed to commit murder in 1990. He must now be sentenced on a voluntary manslaughter conviction.

A state appeals court Friday overturned the second-degree murder conviction of a Dana Point teen-ager who contended that he was driven to shoot a fellow teen-ager who had repeatedly abused and threatened him.

The 4th District Court of Appeal found that Christian Steffens, then 16, was guilty of voluntary manslaughter when he gunned down 18-year-old Rob Elliott, a reputed “skinhead,” on Sept. 8, 1990, after an argument on a stretch of Dana Point beach known as the Strands.

“I’m thrilled, I’m just thrilled. He never should have been convicted of murder,” said Deputy Public Defender Marri Derby, who represented the youth during his trial in Juvenile Court. “He is such a good, smart, sweet kid who feared for his life.”

Steffens was convicted June 7, 1991, by Juvenile Court Judge Francisco P. Briseno, who later effectively sentenced him to nine years in the custody of the California Youth Authority. The appellate court decision means Steffens must now be sentenced on the lesser charge, Derby said.

The appeals court found that Steffens did not possess the malice needed to commit murder, but did not exonerate the youth.

“There is no exoneration from criminal culpability, however, because the killing occurred under the unreasonable, as opposed to reasonable, belief that self-defense was necessary,” the ruling by Justice David G. Sills stated. Sills was joined by Associate Justice Thomas F. Crosby Jr. and Sheila Prell Sonenshine in the unanimous decision.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Bernadette Cemore declined to comment on the decision because she had not yet read it. Steffens’ family has since moved from Dana Point and could not be reached Friday for comment. Elliott’s family also could not be reached for comment.

The fatal shooting ended nearly two years of terror for Steffens, who was repeatedly beaten and threatened by Elliott, according to the court ruling.

Witnesses testified during the trial that Steffens was so fearful of Elliott that he had taken to sleeping with a gun next to his bed.

Steffens believed Elliott was responsible for twice firing a weapon into his bedroom. Shortly before the shooting, Elliott blamed Steffens for breaking his car window.

“He was convinced he was about to be killed and wanted a gun,” the decision said. Steffens then borrowed a handgun and bragged to his friends that Elliott would not “mess with him anymore.”

On the day of the shooting, Steffens confronted Elliott at a party, pointed the gun at him and said “Just get out of here, dude, get out of here, I don’t want to shoot you,” according to witnesses.

“You don’t have the guts to pull the trigger. Go ahead,” Elliott taunted, according to the ruling. Steffens then backed down and started to walk away when Elliott began chasing him, yelling that he was now going to kill Steffens. Steffens turned and fired at Elliott, killing him instantly.

“A horrible thing happened, but it wasn’t murder,” Derby said. “Christian was a victim too.”