A woman who posted sexually explicit images of her girlfriend to hurt and humiliate her after an argument has been given a suspended sentence.

Paige Mitchell, 24, admitted uploading four intimate photos of the victim to her Facebook page. She is the first woman to be sentenced for an offence under revenge porn laws introduced in England and Wales in April. About a dozen men have been convicted under the legislation in England.

Mitchell, from Stevenage, said she posted the images after being accused by her girlfriend of looking at other women.

Sentencing her at Stevenage magistrates court, the chairman of the bench, Bette Hindmarsh, said: “Posting the photos on the internet was a highly vindictive invasion of privacy. It was done with the intention of humiliating and hurting your victim.”

Mitchell pleaded guilty to one count of assault by beating and one count of disclosing private sexual photographs and films with intent to cause distress.

She said the images were sent by her partner during their relationship, which began 14 months before the fight.

Mitchell removed them from her Facebook page after 30 minutes when her mother told her it was against the law, the court heard.

Mitchell’s counsel, Tariq Iqbal, said his client and her girlfriend later reconciled their differences and continued to be in a relationship. But Mitchell invited the court to issue her with a restraining order that would force them to split for good.

In a statement, the victim – whose one-year-old child was sleeping during the argument at Mitchell’s home on 12 May – said the incident “made me feel embarrassed, embarrassed to walk down the street”.

She said: “People who I didn’t want to see my body have seen me [naked]. I don’t want to feel like that.”

Mitchell was handed a six-week sentence for revenge porn and a two-week sentence for common assault to run concurrently, suspended for 18 months. She was ordered to pay £345 in costs.

Iqbal said his client needed help with anger management and the Facebook post was an indication of her naivety. He said: “It was a silly thing to do, but I think it was in the heat of the moment. Emotions can be dangerous sometimes.”

Mitchell did not comment as she ran from the court building at the end of sentencing, wearing a hood over her face and flanked by two friends.