A man who dubbed himself the "Adelaide pedo hunter" has avoided a jail sentence for harassing alleged sex offenders online.
Magistrate Paul Foley recorded a conviction for the offending and placed Richard Paul Warner, 43, on a $200 good behaviour bond for 12 months.
The Adelaide Magistrates Court heard Warner set up a YouTube channel called "Adelaide pedo hunter" and posted videos of his confrontations with men he had lured online in 2017 while posing as an underage boy.
As part of a plea deal which saw prosecutors withdraw an assault charge, Warner pleaded guilty in November to using a carriage service in a harassing or offensive way.
During sentencing submissions last week, his lawyer, Michael Woods, asked Mr Foley not to convict his client.
However, Mr Foley today said Warner was reckless to publish information online which clearly identified the person involved and their residence.
"I accept that your personal trauma as a child and your goal in catching paedophiles gives an explanation as to why you embarked on this conduct," Mr Foley said.
"But it does not amount to extenuating circumstances for using a carriage service to publish information, which clearly led to the identification of the other person and his residence.
"The court should be seen to discourage conduct such as yours which provokes [a] vigilante response by others."
'Pedo hunter' says public should be judge
Outside court today, Warner said he did not want to comment on his actions and that it was up to other people to decide whether what he did was "worth it".
"I think it's for the public to decide from here, I've done what I did," he said.
"Every citizen can be a normal citizen or they can be a good citizen, the difference is somebody who acts upon their conscience or by the law.
"When the law is wrong I think the right thing is to stick by your conscience."
During sentencing submissions, Commonwealth prosecutor Rachel Wang said it was important to deter others from vigilante justice because it "undermined the vital role of the judiciary".
The court heard one of the men Warner had filmed discovered faeces in his letterbox and there were other instances of other property damage.
Mr Woods told the court his client could "not be responsible for the actions of others who acted illegally".
He said Warner simply wanted to catch child sex offenders and pass on the evidence to police.
The court heard one of the men Warner had lured subsequently pleaded guilty to procuring a child for sexual activity and received a suspended sentence.
