10-year-old girl who testified in George Floyd trial reacts to Derek Chauvin's guilty verdict

ByKatie Kindelan ABCNews logo
Thursday, April 22, 2021
10-year-old girl who testified in Chauvin trial reacts to guilty verdict
Judeah Reynolds, 10, accompanied by family friend LaToya Turk, discusses what it was like to take the stand during the high-stakes murder trial and her upcoming book about her experience.

MINNEAPOLIS -- Last May, Judeah Reynolds, then 9, asked her older cousin to take her to get snacks in Minneapolis. They both ended up witnessing the death of George Floyd.

Nearly one year later, Judeah, now 10, testified in the murder trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin, who was found guilty Tuesday of second-degree murder, third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter in the death of Floyd.

Judeah told "Good Morning America" co-anchor Robin Roberts in an interview Wednesday that she watched the guilty verdict being read on TV alongside her parents.

"My mom said that we brought change. My dad said, 'We won,'" said Judeah, adding that she herself felt "kind of proud."

MORE: Teen with 'cell phone and sheer guts' credited for Derek Chauvin's murder conviction

If not for Darnella Frazier's quick thinking, Derek Chauvin might still be a Minneapolis police officer. Instead, Chauvin is behind bars, convicted of murder after kneeling on George Floyd's neck for more than 9 minutes.

The now-famous video of Floyd pleading for his life while Chauvin pressed his left knee on the back of Floyd's neck was taken by Judeah's cousin, then 17-year-old high school student Darnella Frazier.

The video shot by Darnella was described as the "biggest piece of evidence" in the trial by Dr. Ziv Cohen, a clinical assistant professor of psychiatry at Cornell University.

Judeah's own words were also important to the trial that prosecutor Jerry Blackwell highlighted them in his closing arguments.

"Ultimately, it really isn't that complicated," Blackwell told jurors this week. "And what it is you have to decide is so simple that a child could understand it. In fact, a child did understand it when the 9-year-old girl said, 'Get off of him.' That's how simple it was. 'Get off of him.' Common sense."

SEE ALSO: What George Floyd's brother thought watching Derek Chauvin placed in handcuffs

Philonise Floyd discusses what it was like to hear the guilty verdict from inside the courtroom and family attorney Ben Crump remarks on if the diversity of the jury played a factor in the verdict.

Latoya Turk, a family friend who was with Judeah in court, told "GMA" that were it not for Judeah, the jurors and the world would likely not have seen Floyd's final pleas for his life.

"I think for the family we absolutely know that if not for Judeah we wouldn't have been in that position at that time, so if not for Judeah there would have been no walk to the store for snacks and the video," she said. "For Judeah, I don't think she realizes the magnitude that she has changed the world."

Judeah's family has focused in the past year on protecting their daughter's mental health and keeping her life as normal as possible, according to Turk.

The 10-year-old is now writing a children's book, "Judeah's Walk to the Store," about her experience.

Judeah said she hopes the book will inspire people to "be brave and bring change into their story."