A young witness found the bravery to testify against his mother, admitting that his mother “got mad” and “dunked” his sister, who was seven years old, in the pool. His tiny hands were too small to conceal his teary-eyed face, but he nevertheless came forward to testify against his mother. After being silent for seventeen years, A.J. Hutto, who is now 24 years old, has now spoken up about approaching the court as a youngster. He continues to claim that his mother, Amanda Lewis, is “100% guilty.”
An unfathomable truth was revealed by a little child in a courtroom in Florida in the year 2008, and the hearing of his voice shook the otherwise tranquil atmosphere.
A.J. Hutto, whose new name is being concealed for reasons of privacy, did not have a complete understanding of the legal implications of what he was doing. His only intention was to convey the truth, as he was attempting to make sense of something that he should not have been forced to see.
The youngster, who was seven years old and was dressed nicely in a white button shirt, a black knit sweater, and light-colored slacks, recounted in excruciating detail the moment he saw his sister, Adrianna Hutto, die in the backyard swimming pool that belonged to their family.
At first, it was thought that the occurrence was an accident involving drowning. However, when A.J. detailed the situation to the police, he revealed something far more disturbing: he said that his mother, Amanda Lewis, had murdered his sister.
The version of Lewis
On the 8th of August, 2007, Lewis, who was working as a nurse’s aide at a nursing home in the vicinity, came home and sat down for a short sleep while the children watched cartoons.
After getting some rest, Lewis, who was 27 at the time, said that he would go “shopping for back-to-school supplies.” The idea was straightforward.
The children, however, begged to cool down in the above-ground pool, which was around four feet deep and, according to the mother, was totally off-limits without an adult present, as reported by ABC in 2010. This behavior occurred as the sun rose higher in the sky and temperatures surged beyond one hundred degrees.
The reason we were unable to enter the pool today was because we were getting ready to leave, and I informed them of this. According to her, “They expressed a desire to go outside and play for a short period of time while I was getting everything ready.”
After some time had passed, Lewis said that her small son, A.J., who was six years old at the time, had returned to the home and informed his mother, “Mama, Adrianna is in the pool.”
It was at first my assumption that he meant that she may be at the pool, and I responded by saying, “Okay, well, tell her to come in.”
Lewis saw that A.J. was “raking in the water with his hand, as if he was trying to grab [Adrianna]” as she peered out the rear door.
In response, Lewis said, “I ran out, I ran out of the house.” As soon as I arrived to the pool, she was lying on her back. She was a highly purplish and dark blue color.
Despite being evacuated to the hospital, the little child did not survive her stay there.
When asked about what she did when a doctor informed her that Adrianna had passed away, Lewis was quoted as saying, “I kissed her, I hugged her.” I had my hand on her. Because I was aware that it would be the last occasion, the final time that I would encounter her. It was then that I realized my kid had passed away.
The authorities initially was under the impression that the girl had drowned by accident.
Unbeknownst to him at the time, A.J., who was only seven years old at the time, walked into a courtroom that was packed with strangers. He had no idea that the destiny of his mother was in his hands.
My sister was dunk by her mother. “She did some things that she wasn’t supposed to do, and as a result, my mother became angry, and she threw her in the pool,” the little boy said previously in an interview with the police.
In the courtroom, A.J. sketched a picture that depicted a stick figure next to the pool, another stick figure floating above the water, and himself from a distance of several feet beside a tree.
I went viral for telling a court aged 7 that my mom drowned my sister. I'm ending my silence 17 years later https://t.co/3ki6AN2GeD pic.twitter.com/eSz0RJ3qju
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) April 6, 2025
In response to the question posed by the prosecution, he said that he was “playing” in a tree.
After then, he was questioned on the numbers of the pool.
“Mama,” he said in the video footage that was distributed from the courtroom.
In response to a question about the activities shown in his painting by his mother, he said, “Killing my sister.”
“How is she able to do that?” A.J. was questioned about it.
When the youngster testified in court, he said, “Putting her hand over her face,” and his delivery was so straightforward that it struck people right in the heart.
A.J. had also scribbled “She did” and “too bad” on the left side of the drawing. He said that these words indicated that his sister had “died” and that it was “scary.”
Both first-degree murder and severe child abuse were deemed to be crimes committed by Lewis by the jury. She received a sentence of life in jail without the possibility of release after her conviction.
One term for another
A.J. started a new chapter in his life away from the scrutiny of the public after the trial.
After a loving couple took him in as their own, he was given a new name, and then he quietly withdrew from the public eye.
Since that tragic incident, he has never spoken his thoughts in public regarding the occurrences that altered the course of his life irrevocably.
To this point.
The young man, who is now a fireman and is 24 years old, said to the Daily Mail that he was not “coached or anything like that” for the trial and that he did not become aware of the fact that his testimony would affect the outcome of his mother’s case until “later on in my teenager years.”
A.J. said, “I simply told them precisely what I saw word for word,” and went on to say that when he was a youngster, he was “very, extremely afraid… Having all of those people gazing at you on top of everything else. In any case, I was relieved that it was ended.
When asked about his upbringing, A.J. said that it was “just darkness, trauma.” He was referring to his childhood with his sister and Lewis. A great deal of mistreatment. Both Adrianna and I were struck, and we were subjected to physical violence.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve had to talk about it, so I kind of remember some things about my previous life,” he added. He went on to say that his life with his adoptive family was full with love and happiness, which he described as a “360 difference.”
The majority of the time, I am able to recall the mistreatment. Occasionally, we would not even be able to see it coming. “There were times when we were completely taken aback,” he claimed, referring to himself and Adrianna, who he considered to be his “best friend.”
After giving his testimony, A.J. has not seen his mother. He said, “It is court mandated that we cannot see one other, and I’ve wanted to maintain it that way, just so nothing is being brought back up… “every little feeling and emotion, as well as the traumatic experiences, are being brought back into the light,” he said.
“It was a terrible experience,” he continued. This is my mother, if you must know. However, there was also a sense of satisfaction that the trials and tribulations that we were experiencing at the time were finally coming to an end.
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“It’s been a long time since I’ve had to talk about it, so I kind of remember some things about my previous life,” he added. He went on to say that his life with his adoptive family was full with love and happiness, which he described as a “360 difference.”
The majority of the time, I am able to recall the mistreatment. Occasionally, we would not even be able to see it coming. “There were times when we were completely taken aback,” he claimed, referring to himself and Adrianna, who he considered to be his “best friend.”
After giving his testimony, A.J. has not seen his mother. He said, “It is court mandated that we cannot see one other, and I’ve wanted to maintain it that way, just so nothing is being brought back up… “every little feeling and emotion, as well as the traumatic experiences, are being brought back into the light,” he said.
“It was a terrible experience,” he continued. This is my mother, if you must know. However, there was also a sense of satisfaction that the trials and tribulations that we were experiencing at the time were finally coming to an end.