Girl detained for killing pet cat

The footage of the incident was passed around on mobile phones

A 16-year-old girl who killed a cat by throwing it off a fifth floor balcony has been detained for four months.

The girl was part of a group that hurled the pet off the balcony four times and filmed its ordeal, in Druids Heath, Birmingham, on a mobile phone.

Christopher Lees, 18, was detained for four months in July. A 17-year-old boy will be sentenced on 19 September.

A 14-year-old girl was given a 12-month referral order for aiding and abetting at Birmingham Youth Court on Tuesday.

Brain damage

The 16-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was also banned from keeping animals for 10 years for the "despicable" offence.

The girl and the 17-year-old boy both pleaded guilty to causing unnecessary suffering at an earlier hearing.

The cat, called Kharlo, who was owned by a local student, was put down by a vet after suffering brain damage and multiple fractures last October.

Lees was detained for four months in July

The footage of the cruelty was passed around on mobile phones before it was reported to police and the RSPCA.

Sentencing the teenager, chairman of the bench Pamela Holt said: "This offence is so serious that only a custodial sentence can be justified.

"This was an act of wanton cruelty committed against a defenceless cat.

"You were part of a group that hurled the cat, not once, but four times from a fifth floor balcony.

"The lack of compassion and concern for a domestic animal raises the gravest concerns about your behaviour and this court must reflect its disdain, especially for an offence committed for the entertainment and amusement of the perpetrators."