Dani Mathers had a choice of 45 days in jail or 30 days community service removing graffiti. Photo / Getty
Playboy model Dani Mathers claims she had to hide out at her mother's house to avoid the paparazzi and a public backlash after she 'body shamed' a 70-year-old woman on social media at a Los Angeles gym.
The 2015 Playboy Playmate of the year was convicted of invasion of privacy last week and will serve 30 days of community service cleaning up graffiti as punishment for posting the nude photo of the woman on Snapchat.
In an tearful interview with ABC News, Mathers claimed she too had her privacy invaded in the wake of the incident.
"It's taught me a lot about privacy," Mathers said.
"I've lost a lot of that myself as well. We've had a lot of paparazzi involved in my family life. I had my privacy taken away after I took someone else's."
"To hide out at my mother's house at age 30 because of something I've done. It just felt really low."
Mather said she had attempted to reach out to the woman involved and apologise to her in person, but had been unable to do so.
"I haven't been able to actually meet the woman involved, although I've wanted to. So there's just been a lot of unresolved issues," Mathers said.
"I never meant to hurt her. I never ever intended on showing the world this photo.
"I hope that she could forgive me. I don't expect her to forget. I don't expect her to like me. I just, I really want her forgiveness."
Mathers provoked outrage last July when she shared the naked picture with the caption: "If I can't unsee this then you can't either."
The nude image was posted alongside a photo of Mathers in her gym gear and her hand over her mouth.
The 30-year-old Mathers maintained she did not intend to share the post publicly.
"My intention was to reply to the conversation I was having with my friend," she said.
"I know the difference between right and wrong and I chose wrong.
"I didn't have an intention of breaking a law, but obviously I think hopefully everybody knows it's illegal to take a photograph of somebody without their knowledge, especially when they're undressed.
"So I just wasn't thinking, to be honest."
Last week Mathers was sentenced to 45 days in jail or 30 days community service.
She chose 30 days of community service which she will start this week.
"I'm accepting of it," she said.
"I think that the option between 45 - I think it was 45 days in jail or cleaning up graffiti was - two strange options, but I'm excited to clean up our streets.
"This is just one more step into learning from my mistake and I do start this week."
As part of her plea deal Mathers will serve three years of probation and is prohibited from taking photos of people and putting them online without their permission.
She apologised to Playboy executives over the incident and claimed the decision to no longer work with them was mutual.
"So there's been sort of a mutual (decision). I don't really want to work with them at this moment, and they can't really work with me due to the sensitivity of this issue," she said.
"It's still very current and I don't want them to receive any backlash from this as well.
"So we've just sort of walked away from each other. We still have a great relationship."
Mathers said she hoped the incident, and the infamy she has gained, was now behind her.
"That's not how I'm gonna choose to remember my life and my career," she said.
"This is something that I'm never going to forget happened.
"I'm going to continue learning and growing from."