Joel Gibson

Sydney Morning Herald

Six months after police were called to a public pool because she was doing ''bombs'' near children, a 14-year-old indigenous girl has spent six hours in custody in Tamworth police station. The girl's detention was the result of an administrative error on Tuesday, police said, but legal experts criticised their handling of the case from the beginning as questionable.

The saga began when the girl was arrested at Gosford Olympic Pool with two male friends in January ''to prevent an imminent breach of the peace'' after a manager called police about their behaviour. She was then sprayed with capsicum by police after refusing to get into a police wagon, suffered an asthma attack and required an ambulance.

When she failed to attend court on charges of resisting arrest and using offensive language in Woy Woy earlier this month, she was convicted in her absence and a warrant was issued for her arrest, according to a source familiar with the case. The girl, who cannot be named, turned herself in accompanied by her guardian at 9.45am on Tuesday in Tamworth, where she now lives

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