A 14-YEAR-OLD Blackburn schoolgirl was kept in police cells overnight after being caught stealing a pork pie from Tesco, a court was told.

And defence solicitor Daniel King said there must be flaws in a criminal justice system that allowed that situation to arise. "I would have thought there would be provision for accommodating a 14-year-old child in other circumstances," Mr King told Blackburn magistrates.

"I understand the difficulty faced by the police but I would like to think that society could provide for the situation."

The court heard that the girl, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was arrested at 1.25am after stealing the pie from Blackburn's 24-hour Tesco and eating it. Her solicitor told the court that she would be admitting the offence.

Peter Wilde, prosecuting, said he was surprised the girl had been held in custody but he understood there were concerns about her not having an address. Mr King confirmed that the girl was no longer able to live with her grandmother.

The girl was bailed until March 12 and ordered to live where directed by social services.

The chairman said the bench would like to be assured that wherever the girl was living she would not be roaming around Tesco in Hill Street in the early hours.