A Maritime woman was been found not guilty of sex-related charges involving four children, but she was convicted of keeping two boys from their parents.

With family and friends in attendance, Angelina Vernon was found not guilty of sexually assaulting and touching four children under the age of 16 in a Kentville courtroom today.

While she was found innocent of these charges, she was convicted of two counts of harbouring children under the age of 14.

"We're very accepting and completely accepting of the judge's decision in the case," said defence lawyer Chris Manning. "Given the fact that we're coming back to court for sentencing on two of the charges, we want to reserve any further comment until that process is over."

The 35-year-old woman was accused of keeping two brothers away from their parents in March, 2011.

"This mother was without her children for a month and she didn't know where they were and obviously she was quite frantic," said Crown attorney Jim Fife.

The defence argued Vernon was concerned about the boys' well-being and believed they were being emotionally and physically abused at home.

However, the judge called Vernon's actions, "intentional and purposeful."

The parents of the children who accused Vernon of sexual assault and touching say they are pleased with the harbouring conviction.

"I remember I had spent some time with the boy's mother when they were missing and I know she was devastated," said one mother, who can't be identified because of the age of the children involved in the case.

They're not so pleased, however, that Vernon was cleared of the sex-related charges.

"As far as I'm concerned, right now when it comes to concerns with children, the justice system is broken," said the mother.

The allegations date back to between December 2010 and March 2011 at Vernon's home on the base in Greenwood, N.S.

Vernon was accused of grabbing a girl's breasts and a boy's genitals, as well as slapping their behinds.

The judge said she was left with reasonable doubt, calling one of the teen's testimonies problematic. At one point she said the teen's statement was ‘completely and totally inconsistent.'

"I think because there were so many kids and it's been well over a year that the inconsistencies come from being that long and being 13 years old," said one mother.

The maximum penalty for harbouring is ten years in prison.

The Crown will now be looking for a victim impact statement from the boys' parents. Vernon will be sentenced on August 8.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Jacqueline Foster