14-year-old girl found guilty of murder for stabbing friend during sleepover

FORT WORTH, Texas - A 14-year-old girl was found guilty of murder Thursday for the stabbing death of a Fort Worth teenager in May 2018 during a sleepover.

The girl, who was 13 years old at the time of the stabbing, was charged as a juvenile for the murder of Nylah Lightfoot, 14, who was stabbed at an apartment complex in south Fort Worth.

The accused was convicted on the murder charge, which is actually called delinquent conduct. But the jury ruled it was not delinquent conduct on the separate aggravated assault charge. Authorities are not identifying the teen because she is a minor.

MORE: Fort Worth 14-year-old girl fatally stabbed during sleepover

Nylah was stabbed to death last May. Four girls were there. The day started with a pool party and dancing. But at around 3:30 a.m. when Nylah decided she wanted to go home, there was an argument.

Prosecutors told the jury that Nylah’s friend went to the kitchen, got a knife and stabbed and killed her.

Nylah was taken to the hospital but did not survive. The medical examiner said she died from a stab wound to her neck and chest.

On the witness stand, the accused girl said “I didn’t mean to kill her. She ran up on me. It was the worst mistake of my life.”

Bishop Mark Kirtland is a family friend. He explained outside that neither family is prepared to make a public statement at the moment.

“Both families are devastated,” the bishop said. “It affects our whole village. So that’s where we are today.”

Once court adjourned, the victim’s family and the accused girl’s family were escorted separately from the courtroom. A dozen uniformed officers made sure the families remained separated.

A law enforcement source told FOX 4 that there was an incident Wednesday in which a gun was displayed in a threatening manner in the parking lot. Police were called because of tension between the victim’s family and the accused girl’s family.

The sentencing phase begins Friday at 8:30 a.m.

The 14-year-old faces anything from probation, to up to 40 years in custody with the possibility of being transferred from juvenile detention to adult prison before her 19th birthday.