A young mother is facing jail time for sending racist messages on a Facebook group chat and posting them to her personal Facebook profile. Last week, police received a report of a Facebook group chat from a man who was being harassed by someone calling herself “Lisa from Blacktown” and who made racist comments about Aboriginal people. The man reported the chat to police who identified 22-year-old Rebecca Phelps as the administrator of the chat, which contained 12 members, including Phelps. The posts included references to “Aussie [expletive]”, “Nips” and the racist slur “monkey”. The court heard Phelps used the online group to make racist comments, and that she also made derogatory references about Aboriginal people. In March last year, Phelps shared the chat on her Facebook account, and other members were able to view it. “I was disgusted and very upset that I had to see this and have been on a roller coaster of feelings since that I wanted to hide away and try to forget,” the man who complained to police told the court. “It would have been a shock to my husband and son to see this type of thing from me,” he said. Police arrested Phelps and took her to the police station for questioning. When interviewed by police she admitted to making racist comments on the chat and said it was the same person who made the comments. She told police she had no memory of making any of the offending comments, or any personal details of the people who were complaining. Phelps was charged with using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend. At Downing Centre District Court on Friday, she pleaded guilty to one count of using a carriage service to menace, harass or offend and another charge of threatening to kill and cause grievous bodily harm was withdrawn. In the pre-sentence report tendered by defence barrister Samantha Lee, Phelps’s defence said she had no prior convictions and suffered from anxiety. The woman had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and had been on anti-depressants and anti-psychotic medications in the past. “She was very stressed, particularly since she got the diagnosis [of post-traumatic stress disorder] because it was something she didn’t understand,” Ms Lee said. Judge Julie McKay told Phelps she took a strong stand when she confronted people using derogatory terms online and said there had been a significant rise in the number of racist comments in online chats in the past two or three years. The judge said it was “inappropriate” for her to have shared the comments on her Facebook account and said she took a “very cynical view” of the offender’s motivation for making the comments. “You have a high risk of re-offending and it is just a question of when you will use again,” Judge McKay said. “This is a serious offence. I accept that you have a lot to offer, and there is no suggestion of offending other than with this online stuff.” She gave Phelps a good behaviour bond for three months, but warned that if she committed another offence in the next 12 months she would have to serve a minimum non-parole period of six months in jail. Outside court, Phelps said she was “extremely apologetic” for the comments she made in the chatroom. “I don’t even understand why I was even involved in that,” she said. “I was disgusted, and like I said in court I don’t have any recollection of making any of those comments or sending them on, so I would just like to apologise for what happened.” She said she was very disappointed in herself, and said the incident had been a wake-up call. “I had a lot of anxiety in that regard and I guess it just came out when I was going through a really bad time and I was just using any avenue to help with that.” Ms Lee said Phelps was remorseful about her actions and she had now cut off all communication with the offending group chat members. “She’s done a lot of reading and reflecting on this,” Ms Lee said. She said it was “quite clear” that the woman was very embarrassed and regretted her actions. “She does think she used the wrong avenue to deal with the situation.” Phelps is due back in court on May 21 for the date of sentence.