LONGVIEW, TX (KLTV) -
"I believe God was just on my side. I actually think He put me through something to help out other people; they look at me like I am a strong black woman," said 18-year-old Precious French.
Precious has turned a tragedy into her testimony.
"We were real close friends. We went to school together," Precious said about her accused attacker, 17-year-old Tate Nelson.
Precious said she had known Nelson for about 10 years and did not think twice about giving him a ride home when he asked.
Precious said when they were in the car she sensed something was wrong.
"You know how you can feel somebody staring at you? So I turned, and when I turned, he grabbed my neck and started choking me. I was like, 'Tate, Tate, what are you doing? Let go! Let go!'" Precious explained.
Precious said she tried to fight back, but it was no use.
"I felt my hands getting numb, so I was like, 'Precious, just pass out, maybe he'll leave you alone.' So, I passed out and then I woke up in a ditch," she said.
While Precious was unconscious, Nelson reportedly went to find help.....but not for Precious. Authorities say he wanted help hiding her lifeless body. That's when authorities say Nelson found Chris Craver.
"He said Chris, 'I done knocked this girl out and I killed her. Would you help me load her up and put her in my trunk?'" Craver explained.
While Nelson was away, Precious gained consciousness and crawled to a nearby home.
"As I'm laying on her step, he comes back and he stomps me. He actually stomps me in my head six or seven times and tries to snap my neck," Precious said.
Nelson reportedly took off in Precious' car when the homeowner came to the door.
"Her face was swollen up, her eyes were swollen up, she had some blood coming from her," said homeowner, Tracey Hayes.
Hayes called 911. Authorities tracked the GPS on Precious' cell phone, which was left in her car.
That led them on a high speed chase, ending with spike strips and Nelson's arrest.
Precious spent the next month in and out of the hospital. Stitches, pneumonia and then this...
"They found out that the blood they gave me from my pneumonia...my body rejected it, I have sickle cell," Precious said.
She has lived through a nightmare with scars to remind her of what she's been through.
"As I look in the mirror, I think about what I've been through, but I also look at how far I have come from it," Precious said.
Precious said she is here for a reason and will use her story as a testimony to other women.
Van Zandt County District Attorney's office said Nelson has three pending charges: aggravated assault with serious bodily injury, evading arrest and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.
His hearing has not been scheduled.
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