A 14-YEAR-OLD Northfleet girl has moved a step closer to being the subject of Gravesham's first Anti-Social Behaviour Order (ASBO).

The council claims the teenager, who can not be identified at this stage, has made her neighbours' life hell for months.

Gravesham's legal team appeared before magistrates last week to agree a date for her trial, to be held later this month. It will call on numerous residents to cite evidence of violence and abusive behaviour, including spraying racist graffiti.

A council spokesman told the News Shopper its application also alleges criminal damage and an assault on another young person in which it is claimed the girl broke into that person's home.

Magistrates will have to decide whether to make the order, designed to protect residents from unruly youths, and can include anything the council believes will be effective. ASBOs were introduced by the Government in 1999 to "target activities which disrupt the lives of individuals, families or communities".

This is the first time Gravesham has applied to the courts for such an order.

An ASBO is a civil, rather than criminal, matter and can be brought either by the police or a local authority.

December 4, 2001 11:51