Jarrad Pavric was found guilty on two counts of threatening to distribute an intimate image without consent; one count of intentionally distributing an intimate image without consent; and one count of grooming a child for unlawful sexual activity, after a hearing in Wollongong Local Court in June 2020.

Magistrate Mark Douglass sentenced Pavric to a four-month term of imprisonment, followed by a seven-month parole period.

However Pavric maintained his innocence and launched an appeal against the convictions.

At the NSW District Court in Sydney on September 30, Justice Penelope Wass cleared Pavric of all four charges and he was found not guilty of the offences.

April 15: A Horsley man who blackmailed a teenage girl over sexual selfies has been ordered to spend four months in prison, only to immediately appeal the sentence.

Jarrad Pavric was taken into the cells at Wollongong Courthouse on Monday morning but was released on bail that afternoon after his lawyer lodged an appeal.

The sentence had come as sweet relief for the teen victim, who outside the court offered a message for other girls who may be grappling with similar experiences of online betrayal.

"Stand up for yourself," the girl said. "You've got nothing to lose."

Tuesday's decision came almost three years since Pavric, then 20, became one of the first people to be charged under new "revenge porn" laws, after he threatened to share intimate pictures of the 14-year-old girl unless she agreed to perform sex acts.

"The only way I'm going to delete those photos is if you give me a blow job or let me play with your tits," he wrote.

"Do I really have to do something like that? Is there another way?" the girl responded.

"No, that's the only way."

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The girl sent Pavric the pictures after he told her he was 17. She later used the Snapchat location tool to find where Pavric lived. Accompanied by her brother, she confronted him at his house, leading to his arrest.

Magistrate Mark Douglass indicated the case had represented a challenging sentencing exercise because the legislation did not allow him to impose an intensive corrections order - a sentence one step down from full-time prison.

He ordered Pavric to serve a four-month term of imprisonment, followed by a seven-month parole period.

The magistrate gave Pavric some leniency after finding special circumstances existed in the case, including Pavric's mental health conditions, his young age and his mother's status as a working NSW police officer.

"Mr Pavric would ultimately be a target for other inmates in custody ... that's something he can't control," the magistrate said.

He found Pavric's crimes were driven by immaturity, "not paedophilic desire".

"It is a troubling set of facts because of the planned nature," he said.

"My view is that that offence encompasses what was a very clumsy and poorly executed scheme to entice a young person to have sex with the accused."

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Pavric's lawyer had argued his mental illness made him a poor case to be made an example of.

Pavric's family did not react as sentence was handed down.

Outside court, the girl's mother said the experience had been devastating and stressful, but that she was proud of her daughter.

"This is not something you ever expect to have to do, but when you do it's pretty traumatic," she said.

"I'm very proud of her and what she's done. She's stood up as a young girl, and this is what happens when you stand up for yourself.

"She's glad it's over. It's been a long, long battle."

It is a condition of Pavric's release that he stay off social media applications and websites.

He must surrender his passport and his grandmother is required to lodge a $2000 surety.

His release was opposed by Crown prosecutor James Ly, who argued the appeal had little chance of succeeding. But Magistrate Douglass noted Pavric had shown "excellent compliance" with his bail conditions for almost three years already.

The matter returns to court on a date to be determined.

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