Cincinnati brawl victim says she thought she was dead after beating

(NewsNation) — The woman knocked out in a violent beatdown caught on video during the Cincinnati Jazz Festival has revealed the physical and mental toll she is bearing in an interview with NewsNation.

Holly told NewsNation that she is "terrified to go outside" and is concerned the "excruciating pain" she is in could have permanent effects.

Six people have been charged so far.

Despite her health issues, Holly believes she has received a "second chance at life" to use her experience to assist others who are also victims of assault.

"I'm not just going to sit there and be complacent and just say there's nothing that I can do about what's happened to me or what I've been angry about for so long with all of the violence going on and the powers to be, not making sure that we're protected," Holly said.

"Now I understand just how traumatic it is, and I understand what people have gone through, and they've been swept under the rug and their voices haven't been heard... I just feel so blessed to be able to be a voice in this movement because I didn't die, and there are a lot of people out there who were never so lucky."

Holly, the woman attacked in a viral video filmed in downtown Cincinnati, speaks to NewsNation on Aug. 7, 2025 (NewsNation)

Brawl victim recalls violent beating

When police arrived on the scene, Holly says they did not take a statement from her, nor take her information. She says an ambulance was not called for her, and instead, she went home in an Uber.

Holly's experience viewing the attack on video was like watching a movie "where someone dies but they don't know they're dead and they're looking down at their body and they see their dead body there, but they're really confused.

"Then my brain starts getting confused about 'am I dead? Am I actually floating over my body? Like, please God, let me wake up.' Then, my brain starts coming back to normal, and then it's like, 'No, you are alive.'"

Holly added she is yet to hear from the Cincinnati police chief, the Cincinnati mayor, or the city councilwoman who said the victims "begged for that beatdown."

"I find it bizarre. I just wish that they would at least have made an apology for causing public panic and a smear campaign against me," she said.

Holly spoke to NewsNation a day after appearing at a news conference where she called for onlookers who didn't call 911 to be prosecuted or fined.

She first spoke out over the weekend in a tearful video where she thanked the public for all of the prayers and well wishes she received.