A TEENAGER has been cleared of breaching a an anti-social behaviour order placed on Longley, Lowerhouses and parts of Newsome and Aspley.
The 15-year-old boy, from Lowerhouses, was the first person arrested in a crackdown on nuisance behaviour.
He had been charged with knowingly contravening a direction made by a police constable under the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003.
But at Huddersfield Youth Court yesterday he was found not guilty of the offence.
The blanket order was brought in on June 23 and gave police officers power to disperse groups of under-16s if there was reason to believe their presence could cause harassment, alarm or distress to others.
Police were given the power to disperse groups without explanation after 9pm.
If groups were dispersed before 9pm, officers had to explain why they felt group members were likely to cause trouble.
The Lowerhouses teenager was spotted by police at 6.45pm on June 24, with a friends outside a take- away at Lowerhouses Lane.
Pc Paul Denton told them that they should disperse or face arrest.
He said the youngsters were not causing trouble, but there had been previous nuisance behaviour near the take-away and he felt they should be dispersed because the Anti- Social Behaviour Order (Asbo) was in force.
The 15-year-old told Pc Denton that he was waiting for some chips.
The teenager told the court that he was waiting outside because it was hot indoors.
Pc Denton told the boy to get his chips and leave and said he and his colleague would come back in five minutes to check that the youths had left.
The police drove away and returned 10 minutes later to find the teenagers still there.
All except the 15-year-old ran away.
Pc Denton's colleague got out of the van and arrested the 15-year-old, who protested that he had not had his chips.
He told magistrates that he thought Pc Denton had meant he could stay until he got his chips.
The court heard that neither officer believed the boy was actually waiting for chips.
Giving their verdict, the magistrates said they were satisfied the officers had delivered their message clearly, but they were not satisfied that the boy had understood it and therefore, could not have knowingly disobeyed Pc Denton's order.
