Christine Young
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Christine Young is an American investigative journalist and author of the book ''A Bitter Brew: Faith, Power and Poison in a Small New England Town,'' which documented the largest case of criminal
arsenic poisoning Arsenic poisoning (or arsenicosis) is a medical condition that occurs due to elevated levels of arsenic in the body. If arsenic poisoning occurs over a brief period of time, symptoms may include vomiting, abdominal pain, encephalopathy, and water ...
in American history. Young is currently completing a book to be published in 2025, centered around a 1987 murder case and alleged wrongful conviction in New York City. Young, who raised questions about the case even before the 1989 trial, claims the case highlights systemic issues in New York's criminal justice system, including allegations of racism,
misogyny Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against Woman, women or girls. It is a form of sexism that can keep women at a lower social status than Man, men, thus maintaining the social roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been wide ...
, and abuses of power. Young alleges the criminal justice system enabled injustices and contributed to broader systemic failings.


Early years and education

Young was born in Hollis, Queens, New York. When she was seven, her father became an
FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and Federal law enforcement in the United States, its principal federal law enforcement ag ...
agent and was eventually transferred to FBI headquarters in
Washington, DC Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and Federal district of the United States, federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from ...
. Her mother Joan was a registered nurse. Young grew up in Springfield, Virginia, graduating from West Springfield High School. She received a BA in Arts & Humanities from the
University of Southern Maine The University of Southern Maine (USM) is a public university with campuses in Gorham and Portland, Maine, United States. It is the southernmost university in the University of Maine System. It was founded as two separate state universities, Go ...
and MS in Journalism from
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
, where she was a Knight-Bagehot Fellow in Economics and Business Journalism.


Career

Young began her career at WMTW, the
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
affiliate in
Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...
, where her reporting, profiled on A&E's ''Cold Case Files'' and TruTV's
Forensic Files ''Forensic Files'', originally known as ''Medical Detectives'', is an American documentary television program that reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and outbreaks of illness. The show was origin ...
, led police to the remains of Pearl Bruns, a South Portland grandmother who was found buried in the basement of her home after she was beaten to death by her husband. In 1996, Young led the first television camera crew into the world's largest brown egg production facility, Decoster Eggs, where she documented working conditions for migrant workers that she described as dangerous and inhumane. Later, Young's reporting uncovered allegations of financial irregularities and illegal election practices within Christian Civic League of Maine, a conservative lobbying group responsible for overturning Maine's gay rights law. Young's 2005 book, ''A Bitter Brew: Faith, Power and Poison in a Small New England Town,'' documented a 2003
arsenic Arsenic is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol As and atomic number 33. It is a metalloid and one of the pnictogens, and therefore shares many properties with its group 15 neighbors phosphorus and antimony. Arsenic is not ...
poisoning that took place at a small
Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
church in
New Sweden, Maine New Sweden is a town in Aroostook County, Maine, United States. The population was 577 at the 2020 census. History Starting in 1870, a Swedish-immigrant colony was established by the State of Maine in Aroostook County. The State of Maine had ...
, killing one church member and making 15 others critically ill. While
Maine State Police The Maine State Police (MSP) is the state police agency for Maine, which has jurisdiction across the state and was created in 1921. Training programs Maine State Troopers go through an 18-week Basic Law Enforcement training period at the Maine ...
and many church members theorized that someone had helped the poisoner, lifelong member Daniel Bondeson, Young's book argued that Bondeson acted alone, countering theories that suggested others were involved. In 2006, the
Maine Attorney General The Maine Attorney General is the chief legal advisor and prosecutor of the Maine, State of Maine. The constitutional basis of the office is Article IX, Section 11 of the Maine Constitution, and the holder of the position is chosen biennially by t ...
agreed that Bondeson had acted alone and closed the case. In 2006, Young began investigating the facts behind the 1987
Hell's Kitchen Hell's Kitchen, also known as Clinton, or Midtown West on real estate listings, is a neighborhood on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York. It is considered to be bordered by 34th Street (or 41st Street) to the south, ...
murder of a young prostitute from
Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
, Michaelanne Hall, and the conviction of an intellectually challenged security guard, Lebrew Jones. Suspecting Jones had been wrongfully convicted, but Jones was released from prison in 2009 after the New York County District Attorney's Office reopened his case, partly due to Young's investigative reporting. In December 2009, Young's series of multimedia stories on the Jones case was highlighted in testimony before the
Federal Trade Commission The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is an independent agency of the United States government whose principal mission is the enforcement of civil (non-criminal) United States antitrust law, antitrust law and the promotion of consumer protection. It ...
by Karen Dunlap, president of the journalism think tank
Poynter Institute The Poynter Institute for Media Studies is a non-profit journalism school and research organization in St. Petersburg, Florida, United States. The school is the owner of the ''Tampa Bay Times'' newspaper and the International Fact-Checking Netw ...
.Christopher Mele
"Record Story Highlighted at D.C. Journalism Workshop,"
Middletown, NY ''Times Herald-Record,'' December 3, 2009.
Jones, the son of
Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and the ...
and
Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American Jazz piano, jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous Big band, jazz orchestra from 1924 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D ...
jazz drummer Rufus "Speedy" Jones, served 22 years in prison before winning an early release that legal experts noted Young's reporting played a role in bringing attention to the case, contributing to its eventual resolution.


Awards and honors

Young is the recipient of the
Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Award Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...
Silver Baton for Excellence in Investigative Reporting; the
National Headliner Award National may refer to: Common uses * Nation or country ** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen Places in the United States * National, Maryland, ce ...
for Broadcast Investigative Reporting; the Clarion Award for Investigative Reporting; an RTNDA Edward R. Murrow Award for Investigative Reporting; the Society of Professional Journalists
Sigma Delta Chi Award The Sigma Delta Chi Awards are presented annually by the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) (formerly Sigma Delta Chi) for excellence in journalism. The SPJ states the purpose of the award is to promote "the free flow of information vital ...
for Investigative Reporting; the
Online News Association The Online News Association (ONA), founded in 1999, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization of digital journalists headquartered in Washington, D.C., Washington D.C., United States. The founding members first convened in December 1999 in Chicago. ...
's Online Journalism Award for Investigative reporting; and the Excellence in Criminal Justice Reporting Award from
John Jay College of Criminal Justice The John Jay College of Criminal Justice (John Jay) is a public college focused on criminal justice and located in New York City. It is a senior college of the City University of New York (CUNY). John Jay was founded as the only liberal arts col ...
. She has also received the New York Newspaper Publishers Association's Distinguished Investigative Reporting Award; the New York Associated Press Writing Award, and the New York Associated Press Award for Beat Reporting.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Young, Christine Living people American women journalists University of Southern Maine alumni Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni Writers from Maine Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century American women