Ally Foster - news.com.au
AN ADELAIDE mother who filmed herself encouraging her 11-year-old son to smoke his “first bong” has sentenced to nine months in jail.
The 29-year-old woman from Whyalla, whose identity has been suppressed, gave her young son a marijuana pipe and filmed as he breathed in the smoke in the disturbing video.
The footage was uploaded to Facebook and went viral last August.
“Here we are recording [name omitted] having his very first bong,” the woman can be heard saying as she films the boy holding the bong.
She then tells her son to “go for it” and he is seen lighting up the device and breathing in as smoke fills the air.
It took police less than 24 hours after the video went online to charge the woman with supplying drugs to a child.
The 29-year-old appeared in court on Tuesday where it was discovered that she was still smoking the drug, with the court deciding that home detention would be inappropriate.
In a letter to the court, the woman allegedly described the drugs as “a harmless, natural and safe alternative to prescription medication”, according to the The Advertiser.
In her sentencing remarks, District Court Judge Geraldine Davison, said that the video showed little insight into the dangers of exposing children to such substances.
“You said that you received information (your son) was smoking cannabis and you committed this offence in a misguided attempt to put him off that,” she said.
“I find that submission difficult to accept given the content of the video.
She will be eligible for parol in November.