Daniel Balfour was put on probation for the offence A mother who let a 22-year-old man sleep with her 14-year-old daughter has been condemned by a sheriff. He said she was guilty of a "serious dereliction of parental responsibility" for letting the Borders schoolgirl have sex with Daniel Balfour. Balfour, now 23, admitted having underage sex with the girl last year. At Duns Sheriff Court, he was given community service, placed on probation for three years and put on the sex offenders register for three years. The sheriff also banned Balfour from being in an enclosed place with the teenager. This legislation is not for the regulation of morality but for the protection of children

Sheriff Kevin Drummond Balfour, of Berwick-upon-Tweed, had previously admitted having underage sex with the teenager in her Scottish Borders home between 1 April and 6 October last year. The girl's mother wrote to a local newspaper defending her decision to allow her daughter to sleep with him. The woman, who cannot be named to prevent the schoolgirl being identified, argued that she was trying to protect her daughter. Sheriff Kevin Drummond said that the mother had shown a "dereliction of parental duty". He told Balfour the young man had been "well aware" that the girl was underage and yet he still "persisted in the sexual activity". The sheriff was also critical of the mother's attitude to the relationship. Best protection He said: "As part of the narrative provided to me, it is said that the sexual relationship took place not only with the knowledge of her mother but without objection and, if that is the case, that is a serious dereliction of parental responsibility. "This legislation is not for the regulation of morality but for the protection of children and the first place where children should expect to find that protection is in their own home and from their parents." Sheriff Drummond said the case crossed the custody threshold but decided that placing Balfour on probation would offer the best level of protection for the girl. A condition of his probation is that he should not be alone in an enclosed place with the teenager. He was also ordered to carry out 140 hours of community service.



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