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Miami Girl Finalist For Citizen Hero Medal

MIAMI (CBSMiami) – A Miami girl who showed bravery and tenacity when she fought off a man who tried to abduct her younger cousin has been selected as a finalist for a Citizen Hero medal from the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation.

Last July 39-year old David Moore tried to kidnap a 4-year old boy who was playing in front of her home. The boy's cousin, A'Nari Taylor, heard the commotion and ran to help.

"I thought it was upstairs, but we saw the man and he said 'God told me to take you'," said Taylor at the time. "And I had to fight the man so he can let Brandin (her cousin) go."

Taylor said her cousin was too scared to fight back.

"He wasn't saying nothing, he was shaking," said Taylor.

Moore eventually let the boy go.

Taylor's mother, Tanya Dingle, is proud that her daughter took action.

"She stood up, she's only seven years old," she said at the time.

Neighbors called police who arrested Moore.

The Miami-Dade Police Department recognized Taylor with a Heroes Award.  She was also given a Do The Right Thing award from the school district.

Taylor is one of 23 finalists to be recognized as a citizen hero by the Congressional Medal of Honor Foundation, according to CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald. The nearly two dozen finalists will be narrowed down to four, those names will be announced on March 11th.

On March 25th, at a ceremony marking the 150th anniversary of the awards in Washington, D.C., previous Medal of Honor recipients will present the new Citizen Honorees with their awards.

CBS4 news partner The Miami Herald contributed to this report.

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