NEW YORK (AP) — Naomi Campbell pleaded guilty to misdemeanour assault yesterday for hitting her maid with a cell phone over a pair of missing jeans.“I threw a cell phone in the apartment. The cell phone hit Ana,” Campbell told Manhattan Criminal Court Judge Robert Mandelbaum. “This was an accident because I did not intend to hit her.”

If convicted at trial, Campbell, who originally had been charged with second-degree felony assault, could have been sentenced to two to seven years in prison.

Campbell, 36, hit Ana Scolavino in the back of the head with the phone in the supermodel’s Manhattan apartment last March. Scolavino was treated for a head injury.

In exchange for her guilty plea, Campbell must pay Scolavino’s medical expenses of $363, do five days of community service and attend a two-day anger management programme.

The British catwalker wore stiletto heels, a tight-fitting black dress and waist-length jacket and several gold chains around her neck for her court appearance.

Outside the courthouse, Campbell’s lawyer, David Breitbart, said he didn’t want her exposed to stalkers, so “I’m hopeful she can do the community service indoors.”