Heartbreaking moment seven-year-old describes mum drowning his own sister as he speaks out 17 years later
Warning: This article contains discussion of child abuse which some readers may find distressing.
The heartbreaking moment a young boy described his mother drowning his sister proved to be crucial in her trial and conviction.
On 8 August 2007, a woman named Amanda E. Lewis made an emergency call in Esto, Florida, where she said she'd found her daughter Adrianna Hutto in the family pool and not breathing.
The girl was rushed to hospital where she was pronounced dead, and her death was initially treated as an accident until her brother AJ told police what he'd seen.
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The boy described Amanda throwing Adrianna into the pool and 'started holding her face' and told them how his sister 'started screaming'.
He then said that his sister begged him to call the police, and showed how Amanda held his sister's face while she was in the pool, with his statements forming a key part of Lewis' subsequent trial.
AJ said he saw here 'dunk' his sister into the pool as punishment.
"Mama dunked my sister. She done some stuff that she ain't suppose so my mama got mad, so she throwed her in the pool," the boy had said.
During the trial he said he'd seen Amanda 'killing my sister', and the woman was found guilty of first degree murder and aggravated child abuse.
She was sentenced to life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, meaning she will never be released from prison.
AJ, now 24 and living under a different name, recently told the Daily Mail he completely stands by what he said and believes Lewis is '100 percent guilty'.
He has had no direct contact with her, naming her as 'Amanda' instead of as his mother, and said he does not believe he was coached by anyone to testify against her despite what campaigners to free Lewis claimed.
He said: "I just told them exactly what I saw word for word."
Describing his childhood with Amanda to the Mail, he said there was 'darkness, trauma' and 'a lot of abuse'.
AJ said that both he and his sister were hit by Amanda, and the difference between living with her and his adoptive family was 'night and day'.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence regarding the welfare of a child, contact the NSPCC on 0808 800 5000, 10am-8pm Monday to Friday. If you are a child seeking advice and support, call Childline for free on 0800 1111, 24/7.
Joe Harker