A TEENAGE girl from the Isle of Wight, who admitted using an imitation firearm and attacking and injuring a police officer, has been handed an 18-month detention and training order by Isle of Wight Youth Court magistrates.

The 16-year-old appeared today (Wednesday) via videolink following an incident in Newport on February 4.

Police were called at 11.43am, following reports of an incident at the Island Learning Centre in Albany Road, which was in lockdown.

Officers later located the girl on St James Street, where PC Kerri Trickey was assaulted, suffering a head injury.

The teenager put a gun to the PC's head and pulled the trigger, the court heard, with the officer unaware that the gun was fake.

The girl used it to strike the officer above the eye, causing an injury that needed hospital treatment, said Liz Miller, prosecuting.

A member of the public who witnessed the attack managed to restrain the teenager.

The girl admitted assault occasioning actual bodily harm, and three counts of possession of an imitation firearm, namely a Sig Sauer P226 BB gun, with intent to cause fear of violence against one male and two females, under the Firearms Act.

The court was also told that, before the incident in Newport, the teenager had pointed the gun at a boy, one of the Island Learning Centre pupils. 

The teenager cannot be named for legal reasons, due to her age.

The prosecutor said: "The incident started at the Island Learning Centre and there were three people involved. She was asked to leave and went down to the town."

When sentencing her, magistrates warned she would be further punished if she flouted the terms of the order.

The girl will serve her sentence in a youth detention centre.