A teenager who circulated a letter alleging that a schoolgirl had AIDS was ordered to do 150 hours of community service.

Daniel Clay Smith, 18, of Ord Road, Warwick pleaded guilty on March 5 in Magistrates' Court to publishing defamatory matter about another person.

Yesterday, Senior Magistrate Will Francis told Smith his sentence would give him "a lot of serious thought to the terrible experience the young woman went through''.

"I understand you now really begin to understand what a devastating thing you've done,'' Mr. Francis added.

Crown counsel Larry Mussenden in March told Mr. Francis that Smith beckoned two students to the fence at Whitney Institute School on May 22 last year.

He handed them copies of a letter about a female student.

The letter was allegedly written by the student and claimed that she had contracted AIDS from an older man and continued to have unprotected sex.

The letters circulated around the school until teachers became aware of them.

Police were called and a copy was secured for investigation.

Smith later gave a voluntary statement to Police. He claimed he had been approached by a man in Hamilton to hand out the letters at the school for $100.

Mr. Mussenden told Mr. Francis that if the case had gone to trial, the contents of the letter would have been shown to be false.

"It must have been a harrowing experience,'' Mr. Francis said.

Smith apologised for the deed and added: "I didn't have any money and a guy offered me $100. I'm sorry.''