A 13-year-old girl in California has made headlines recently, after reportedly fending off a grown man attempting to assault her on her way home from school.
The young girl, whose family have asked to remain anonymous, was walking home from school through a quiet neighbourhood in Carmel, California, when the incident took place earlier this month.
According to authorities, the suspect - who is described as an adult male - suddenly lunged towards the girl from behind two parked cars in an attempt to physically assault her on her walk home.
The young girl began taking jiu-jitsu classes three years ago, and so bravely turned to her self-defense skills to fend off the attacker.
“She punched him, she got him in a headlock, kneed him a couple of times, spun him around, threw him on the ground,” Sensei Michael Blackburn, the teen’s instructor at the Carmel Youth Center, told 6ABC.
He continued, “She had stepped on his foot doing all this, and when she threw him on the ground, he broke his ankle.”
Thanks to the young girl’s bravery and self-defense skills, she was able to break free and run home - complete with no injuries.
Police are still looking for the suspect, but have released a composite sketch based on the young girl’s description, and are urging the public to come forward if they saw anything.
As for the girl’s family, they are obviously shaken by the incident, but also extremely proud of their daughter, as is the girl’s instructor.
“I told her we were proud of her, and she did exactly as she was supposed to do,” Sensei Blackburn said. “You have to fight in class like you're going to protect yourself on the street.”
As for the young girl, she hopes this story will remind others the importance of self-defense.
What a little legend - props to her.
