#Darnella Frazier wasn’t looking to be hero by filming George Floyd video: lawyer

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Darnella Frazier, left, chatted with school resource officer Drea Leal at Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis in 2019.
David Joles/TNS via ZUMA Wire

The girl who captured the infamous video of George Floyd’s fatal encounter with Minneapolis cops said through her lawyer that she never meant to be a hero when she documented the moment that sparked a global outcry against racism and police brutality, according to a report.

“She had no idea she would witness and document one of the most important and high-profile police murders in American history,” 17-year-old Darnella Frazier’s attorney Seth Cobin said, the Star Tribune reported.

“If it wasn’t for her bravery, presence of mind and steady hand, and her willingness to post the video on Facebook and share her trauma with the world, all four of those police officers would still be on the streets, possibly terrorizing other members of the community,” the attorney added.

Cobin described Frazier as “just a 17-year-old high school student, with a boyfriend and a job at the mall, who did the right thing.”

“She’s the Rosa Parks of her generation,” he added, referring to the famed civil rights activist.

The teen is not ready to speak publicly about the impact her footage had in the May 25 incident, which led to police officer Derek Chauvin, whom she recording pressing his knee into Floyd’s neck, being charged with second-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter.

Three other cops — Thomas Lane, J. Alexander Kueng and Tou Thao — have been charged with aiding and abetting the alleged murder.

All of the suspects have been fired from the police force.

“The world needed to see what I was seeing,” Frazier previously told the Star Tribune. “Stuff like this happens in silence too many times.”

On Thursday, Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo said during a news conference that while “we should never have to rely upon” witness video to keep police accountable, I am thankful, absolutely, that this was captured in the manner that it was.”

The chief encouraged others to do the same when they witness similar scenes.

“Record. Record, absolutely,” Arradondo said. “Record, call. Call a friend. Yell out. Call 911. We need a supervisor to the scene. Absolutely. I need to know that. We need to know that. So the community plays a vital role and did two weeks ago.”

In the moments leading up the fateful encounter, Frazier’s 9-year-old cousin asked to go from the family’s apartment to the nearby Cup Foods store, where Floyd allegedly used a counterfeit $20 bill to buy cigarettes.

“When she was a few storefronts from the shop, she saw four officers roughly removing a black motorist from his vehicle,” Cobin said.

“Because police brutality is so common in that neighborhood, and the officers rarely face consequences, she pulled out her iPhone and started recording,” he added.

Cobin said Frazier “hasn’t received threats or anything like that” but acknowledged that she has been the target of “trash talking and ‘shade’ ” on social media since the incident.

“She’s staying positive and avoiding the drama on social media,” he said.