A young mum who suffered years of sexual and physical abuse and fought against drugs has been sent to jail.

Jodie Smith, 21, from Keighley, was this week given a three-month prison term for shoplifting, despite pleas for her to be spared.

The sentence was imposed on Wednesday by Skipton Magistrates, despite a harrowing catalogue of despair that had unfolded before them.

Smith, of North Dean Road, Braithwaite, wept as she was sent down for three offences of shoplifting - in Bradford, Keighley and Cross Hills.

The court heard how Smith's string of offences, including previous convictions, had been the result of drug addiction and years of abuse in a care home and by a former boyfriend.

Mohammed Hussain, for Smith, said she had been placed into care at an early age and suffered two years of sexual abuse, from the age of five until seven.

She was then placed in a "loving" foster family, but returned to Keighley as a teenager to find her biological mother.

"It seems then that things started going downhill for her," explained Mr Hussain, in mitigation for Smith.

He told the court how Smith, as a young teenager, had found herself involved with drug users and, despite initially resisting, had become addicted to heroin.

"Her returning to Keighley resulted in her receiving compensation as a result of the abuse.

"That made her far more vulnerable as she was someone for a period of time who had some money. Certain sharks were attracted to her money and took advantage of her vulnerable position," Mr Hussain added.

Her situation was made worse when she found and visited her mother, only to be assaulted by her on Christmas Day, he continued.

"Her mother made it clear that she wanted nothing to do with her. She was extremely distressed," he said.

Smith then became involved with another drug addict, who beat her regularly, said Mr Hussain, pointing out to magistrates recent bruises on the defendant's face. "He subjected Jodie to regular assaults and a lot of duress to commit offences to raise money to fund their addiction," added Mr Hussain.

Smith was pregnant at the time of the offences and admitted that she stole the goods - four bottles of whisky, four Polaroid cameras, four bottles of after-shave and an electric razor - to buy drugs.

Mr Hussain pleaded with magistrates not to send his client to jail, saying that the birth of her son had changed her life and made her determined to stay drug-free and keep him out of care homes.

"This is the first time she has been in a situation where she feels wholly and solely responsible for anybody. She feels unconditional love for her child and cares greatly for him," said Mr Hussain.

"The birth of her child and social services' involvement has brought back all the experiences she has of care homes and being in care. She is worried that if her child remains in care, he will be at risk of suffering abuse."

Mr Hussain said that Smith was "psychologically vulnerable" and had been further traumatised by a visit from her mother while she was in hospital giving birth.

Her mother had only visited the defendant to tell her she was dying of cancer, and she told Smith that she had caused the disease, Mr Hussain told the court.

He said that his client wanted to take the opportunity of a place at a mother and baby residential unit far away from Keighley and asked the court not to jail her.

But magistrates told Smith that her failure to respond to previous court orders and the fact that she had committed the offences while the subject of a conditional discharge had warranted a custodial sentence.

They ordered her to serve a month in prison for each offence, to be served consecutively.