An Australian grandma has now been handed a criminal record after exposing a convicted sex offender who relocated to her neighborhood when he was released from prison.
Grandmother of seven Maxine Davey decided to warn her fellow residents that a child predator, 41-year-old Edward James Thomson, was living in the Central Queensland neighborhood of Calliope, around Gladstone.
She also filmed the external part of his home, including his vehicles, which were able to be identified. She shared the footage on Facebook. Needless to say, this riled up the community and saw an influx of both angry and concerned comments from residents.
Following her actions, Davey was convicted of one count of unlawful stalking, narrowly avoiding time behind bars
Speaking to 9Now's A Current Affair, she said: "I just wanted to hold up a sign, publicise the fact that other parents (need) to be aware, but then I stepped over the line and broke the law.
"I crossed the line by posting it. I posted it and it was online for two hours and 35 minutes before I quickly removed it.
"I was shocked, I was sorry. I didn't know at the time I'd broken the law, but obviously [the police] told me."
Davey could have potentially had to serve a five-year jail, tarnishing a clean record.
The 59-year-old granny said she suffered a "huge amount of anxiety", when she got into trouble with authorities over her decision to expose the local sex offender.
Ultimately, the court allowed her to walk free and she was handed a $2,200 fine, had her phone confiscated and now has a recorded conviction.
Davey, a cancer survivor living on a support pension, said that the ruling "hurt" her.
She said: "I'm really devastated by it all. I've never considered myself a criminal and I'll have this charge against me for the rest of my life."
According to the outlet, victims of Thomson have been vocal in their support for Davey.
"It is absolutely ridiculous how the justice system works. She shouldn't be put through this. This is not fair," one victim was quoted as saying.
"I believe she is honestly like a hero. It absolutely breaks my heart that she's trying to do the right thing (as) a human and she's absolutely being torn apart for it," another said.