A pregnant girl has admitted stabbing a teenage boy to death but claimed it was because she feared she was going to be assaulted.

The 17-year-old, who cannot be named, struck Conner Cowper with a knife at a flat in Holytown, Lanarkshire, on April 12 this year.

The girl told the High Court in Glasgow she believed Conner had "fancied" her.

But the teenager claimed the 18-year-old started arguing with her after she kissed another man.

The girl then grabbed a knife amid claims Conner "lunged" at her.

The incident was said to have triggered memories of abuse she suffered at the hands of an ex-partner.

Her QC Tony Graham asked: "On April 12. what did you think?"

She replied: "I thought he was going to assault me. I thought back to when I was with (her ex partner)."

Mr Graham: "You picked up the knife - why?"

The girl said: "To defend myself."

The defence advocate went on: "The knife went four inches into Conner Cowper's neck - how did it get there?"

The 17-year-old answered: "I did it."

Mr Graham also asked: "Do you have any recollection of making that plunging motion at all?"

She replied: "No."

It was further put to her why she had lifted a knife to an "unarmed man".

The teenager said: "I don't know - I was scared."

The girl was giving evidence at her trial on Tuesday where she denied murder.

She told jurors of suffering "weekly violence" in a previous relationship which ended in March 2018.

The teenager added she had been thinking of her "past history" with her ex during the row with Conner.

She claimed Conner had been the first person to "shout" at her since leaving her former lover.

Mr Graham asked: "How did that make you feel?"

She replied: "In a way, scared."

The QC also quizzed her on what went on after Conner was struck that day.

Mr Graham asked: "You left the house - what did you think you had done?"

The girl replied: "Stabbed someone."

The advocate said: "Did you think you would be charged with the crime of murder?"

She said: "No."

The trial, before Lord Arthurson, continues.