A WORKINGTON woman has been put on the Sex Offender Register for showing a photo of herself in a naked and 'sexual' pose to a 13-year-old girl.

Samantha Amy Young, 26, who originally faced four similar allegations, is now barred from having unsupervised access to any female child under 16 for five years, a judge at Carlisle Crown Court ruled.

Young pleaded guilty to a single count of causing a child to look at naked image of herself for the purpose of sexual gratification.

Prosecutor Joe Allman said the defendant, of Crosthwaite Court, Workington, committed the offence on Friday, June 12, last year.

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It came to light after the child’s mother asked her daughter about time she had spent with Young days earlier. The teenager became upset, and revealed to her mother that Young showed her a naked image of herself on her phone.

When interviewed by police, Young gave a lengthy account, including a description of being at the seaside with a group of children who were jumping into the water.

Young claimed that while one teenager was looking at pictures on her phone, she 'accidentally' saw her naked self-portrait. “She said she immediately took the phone back and apologised,” said Mr Allman.

“She deleted the image.”

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Young - 24 at the time she committed the offence - claimed that the children would have been unable to access the naked image on her phone had they picked it up because it was password-protected.

Of the offending image, Mr Allman said it showed the defendant naked and in a “sexual pose.”

Peter Wilson, defending, said the defendant had a series of medical and mental health issues, which included anxiety, depression, borderline personality disorder and endometriosis.

“She has longstanding mental health and low mood difficulties, going back to her early adolescent years,” said the barrister.

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A background report spoke also of “significant trauma and bereavement” in her formative years.

She had self-harmed and overdosed and had needed help from a mental health crisis team on numerous occasions. “She has started to lose her hair as a result of the stress of these proceedings,” said Mr Wilson.

He added: “She is not an entrenched sexual offender.”

Judge Richard Archer told Young that the image involved was 'entirely inappropriate' for a child of 13 to see.

But noting that the defendant had no previous relevant convictions - though she was recently prosecuted for harassment; and her mental health difficulties, the judge said a community order was appropriate.

Judge Archer expressed concern, however, about parts of Young’s background probation report, which suggested she regarded herself as much a victim of the offence as the child she showed the naked image to.

He urged her to apply herself to her community order to rehabilitate herself so that the public can be better protected. The judge imposed an 18-month community order which will include 30 rehabilitation activity days.

He declined to impose punitive unpaid work because of Young’s physical and mental health problems.

Judge Archer ruled that the defendant should have her name on the Sex Offender Register for five years and he imposed a sexual harm prevention order for the same period.

This includes various restrictions.

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