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Christian author Steve Forkin faces court this week, fighting charges after he attempted to help a distressed woman during Australia’s Covid lockdowns.

Steve Forkin, a 60-year-old Christian author and apologist from Coffs Harbour, will face an appeal hearing this Wednesday for allegedly breaching COVID restrictions during the contentious NSW lockdowns.

The charge stems from an incident in August 2021, when Mr Forkin was arrested for intervening in what he perceived as police harassment of a Jewish woman in Brelsford Park near the town centre of Coffs Harbour.

Body camera footage that was eventually released as court evidence shows police discussing what charges to bring against Forkin after his arrest, raising questions about their conduct during the draconian lockdown period.

Forkin’s case has been fraught with allegations of police misconduct, judicial bias, and suppression of evidence.

“The whole thing has been a total sham from start to finish,” Mr Forkin told The Daily Declaration. Independent Australian outlets Caldron Pool and Rebel News have also spotlighted Forkin’s unjust treatment.

If Forkin wins his appeal, he told us, “I will sue the police for malicious prosecution, assault and damages.”

That will only be possible if he is able to clear his name at this week’s district court appeal hearing.

A Walk Turns into a Confrontation

On Saturday 21st of August around lunchtime, Steve Forkin was out on a routine walk in his neighbourhood, when he passed through Brelsford Park in Coffs Harbour, within the five-kilometre radius permitted under NSW’s strict lockdown rules.

While there, he noticed an unusually large police presence, including approximately 10 police officers, several patrol cars, a van and a paddy wagon.

“I decided to walk past them and ask them what the whole thing was about since it looked quite intimidating to me,” Mr Forkin told The Daily Declaration.

Immediately, officers demanded to know why Mr Forkin was “out of [his] home”. After explaining that he was going for a walk, police asked for identification.

Taken aback that a simple walk in the park warranted a “papers please” query from the police, Forkin initially challenged the demand.

But realising he was in a losing position, he handed over his driver’s license while expressing dismay at their compliance with the government’s overreach.

“My mother grew up in Nazi Germany,” he explained. “Her whole family went to the death camps.”

“Do you know how that all happened? Germany managed to convince normal citizens that what’s happening in this country right now is okay.”

“You guys are pawns in that big game, and you can’t see it,” he continued. “I find that absolutely appalling. I’m frightened for your well-being because one day you’ll realise what game you’re a part of.”

“I find this absolutely disgusting — that self-appointed politicians can set themselves above the Constitution, and just make a declaration which makes the Constitution null and void. And the police, who are meant to be the servant of the public, now becomes the servant of the new dictators. Don’t tell me that this is right or good.”

Steve Forkin’s Violent Arrest

After the exchange, Forkin continued his walk. At this time he received a phone call from a friend who had just reported a burglary, only to be told by police that they were too busy to respond.

This stark contrast in law enforcement priorities struck Forkin.

“Given what my friend had told me, I decided to walk past the police officer gathering on my way home and ask them for clarification,” he told us.

It was then that he noticed a Jewish woman he knew being confronted by several officers. She appeared distressed, with police tugging at her arms.

When the woman dropped her keep cup lid, Forkin approached, picked it up, and intended to hand it to her. Immediately and without warning, an officer seized his arm, forced him to the ground and handcuffed him. In the footage, Forkin can be heard screaming in pain and shock as he was detained.

Forkin was locked in a paddy wagon, where additional body cam footage captured a superintendent instructing officers: “Yeah, so you can get him for COVID or give him more, okay? Because he would not go away. He’s been told that many times.”

Mr Forkin was then taken to the Coffs Harbour Police Station, stripped of his belongings, and denied any explanation regarding his charges. He was held in a cell for five hours before being released to his wife.

The Charges and Court Proceedings

Initially, police threatened to charge Mr Forkin with ten offences. Ultimately, he was charged with two: hindering police and attending an illegal gathering, the latter framed as breaching COVID public health order restrictions.

The hindering charge carried a possible six-month jail term. Four weeks after his arrest, a police officer delivered the official charges to his home late on a Friday night, leaving him little time to prepare for a Monday court appearance.

With the help of lawyers connected to his son’s partner in Queensland, Forkin faced a series of court hearings. The first three hearings revolved around the police’s refusal to disclose critical body-worn camera footage. His legal team successfully subpoenaed top-ranking officials in Sydney to force the release of the evidence. The footage, later released to journalist Avi Yemini of Rebel News, provided crucial insights into the arbitrary and excessive force used against Forkin.

Throughout the hearings, police testimony appeared riddled with inconsistencies. For instance, officers claimed Forkin had been surveilling them from a car earlier that day, but this was contradicted by the fact that Forkin’s charge sheet showed no record of him carrying car keys while out walking.

Furthermore, leaked internal police communications revealed directives from high-ranking officials instructing officers to “go hard” over the weekend, with assurances that they would be protected if they overstepped their authority.

After multiple hearings, Forkin’s hindering charge was dropped in 2023 due to the unavailability of a key witness, a former police officer.

However, in a final hearing, a magistrate found Forkin guilty of breaching COVID restrictions, declaring him a danger to himself and to society who needed to be charged to prevent repeat offences.

The magistrate also speculated that Forkin might have organised an event, despite there being no evidence that such an event occurring.

It is this conviction that Mr Forkin is appealing in the New South Wales District Court this week.

Setting a Precedent Against Government Overreach

Mr Forkin’s case has sparked outrage among civil liberties advocates. The bodycam footage published by Rebel News has garnered significant public attention, amassing nearly 100,000 views on YouTube and being widely shared across other social media platforms.

Reflecting on why he was subjected to such harsh treatment by authorities, Mr Forkin told The Daily Declaration, “I wrote lots of lengthy emails to local councillors and state politicians during Covid, trying to speak some sense about the Covid madness.”

“People who speak up are easily considered a ‘thorn in the flesh’ by government bureaucrats.”

As he prepares for his appeal, Forkin remains optimistic, saying, “Several other people were charged and fined that day. All their hearings resulted in dismissals.”

A successful outcome this week could pave the way for a lawsuit against the police for malicious prosecution and assault. However, Forkin acknowledges that his fight is not just about personal vindication — it is about setting a precedent against government overreach and ensuring accountability within Australia’s judicial system.

Beyond his legal fight, Forkin continues his apologetics work through platforms like his YouTube channels Reformed Apologetics and No Apologies, along with his Substack page, Reformed Apologist. He has also authored several books that are available on Amazon.