Wolverhampton teenager on 'jolly' ploughed into boy

The teenager from Wolverhampton, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was a provisional licence holder.

The 13-year-old boy she hit in Pinfold Lane, Penn, was left in a coma in hospital after suffering serious head injuries in the accident, the city's magistrates court was told.

She was spared jail after district judge Michael Wheeler decided she would not cope very well in a young offenders institution as she was not very "streetwise."

Mr Wheeler also refused to lift reporting restrictions protecting her identity after an application was made by the Express & Star. He said it was not in the public's interest to identify the girl.

Mrs Sukhi Rai, prosecuting, said the victim had not been able to return to school full-time as a result of the accident on July 18.

She told the court the defendant, from Tettenhall, took her mother's car without permission and picked up a number of friends.

"She reached the traffic island at Pinfold Lane and accelerated from there. It is not clear why she lost control," she said.

Mrs Rai told the court the victim was walking along the pavement when he was struck by the car.

Mr Richard Quinn, defending, said the girl was "extremely remorseful". He added: "She regrets what she has done."

The girl, who turns 18 next month, admitted using a car without third party insurance, driving without a licence, aggravated vehicle taking and driving without due care and attention.

She was handed a 12-month intensive referral order, three-month curfew to stay indoors between 8pm-7am and must complete 15 hours of supervised work. She must pay costs of £85 and was disqualified from driving for 18 months.

Mr Wheeler told her: "It's difficult for me to pick a word to describe your actions. Foolish does not really cut it."

By Laura Blyth