Charity shop worker who is transitioning to become a woman whose New Year’s resolution was to have sex with a child under 10 and had 16,000 child abuse images is jailed

A charity shop worker who is transitioning to become a woman has been jailed for two years for possessing thousands of ‘abhorrent’ child abuse images.

Samantha Norris, 56, of Ringwood, Hampshire, was previously cleared by a jury of exposing ‘her penis’ to two 11-year-old girls following a trial at Southampton Court in January.

But yesterday, Norris pleaded guilty to separate charges of possessing 16,000 images of children – including about 2,000 still and 121 moving images of category A seriousness – as well as an extreme porn image involving an animal.

The images included children aged as young as three, with others showing youngsters aged about six in ‘distress and pain’, the court heard.

Passing sentence, Judge Rowland stated Norris had written notes of sexual fantasies about a young child, as well as a ‘New Year’s resolution to have sex with a girl under 10’.

Norris pleaded guilty at Southampton Crown Court to charges of possessing 16,000 images of children – including about 2,000 still and 121 moving images of category A seriousness

He told the defendant: ‘It’s all about you Samantha Norris and not the victims.

‘You do not accept they are victims, you have distorted views and you do not feel your offending should be treated as serious – how would a right-minded person think about that?

‘Your views are alarming and complex – you present a high risk of harm to children.’

The defendant entered the pleas after being cleared by a jury of other charges of engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and of indecent exposure.

As well as the prison sentence, Judge Nicholas Rowland made Norris subject to a sexual harm prevention order for 10 years. 

He added: ‘It’s pretty blatant to me that you decided not to enter guilty pleas (earlier) as these pleas would have gone in front of the jury of the other matters.’

During the trial for the exposure and sexual activity charges, of which Norris was cleared, the prosecution had claimed that the defendant had ‘exposed her penis’ deliberately to two youngsters through the window of her flat.

But Norris, who worked at a Sue Ryder charity shop, described being a naturist who was ‘habitually naked’ at home.

Norris insisted the children could only have spotted any nudity if they had been ‘spying’.

Norris also complained about receiving abuse from youngsters in the town and accused the girls of being ‘taunting’.