Tay’lor Smith, the Washington state woman who pushed her former friend off of a bridge, causing severe injuries, has pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges and will likely avoid jail, The Columbian is reporting.
Back in August 2018, Smith, 19, and her then-friend, Jordan Holgerson, 16, were at Moulton Falls Regional Park, near Vancouver, Washington. There, the two young women were on the historic concrete bridge that spans the East Fork of the Lewis River. Popular with jumpers, the bridge attracted Holgerson and Smith. However, once over the railing and looking at the 50-foot drop below, Holgerson decided she wasn’t going to go through with it after all, according to the criminal complaint against Smith.
“Once at the top, Jordan hesitated and began to have second thoughts about jumping. It should be noted that the surface of the bridge is 50 feet above the river.”
Smith, however, apparently wasn’t having that, and pushed the young lady off of the bridge. She fell 50 feet into the water, in the process breaking five ribs and puncturing both of her lungs.
A brief cellphone video of the incident soon hit the internet, showing Smith pushing Holgerson off of the bridge as well as the sound of her impact with the water. You can see the video of the incident below, but be warned: this video contains content that some may find disturbing.
Five days after the video hit the internet, Smith was taken downtown by Clark County sheriff’s deputies, and charged with one count of reckless endangerment.
During an appearance on Good Morning America , Smith said that she didn’t consider the repercussions of her actions before she pushed her friend. She initially pleaded not guilty during a December 2018 court appearance, according to NBC News .
Between her December appearance and Monday, she was offered a plea deal, the details of which were not made public. And this week, Smith entered a plea of guilty to misdemeanor reckless endangerment.
Tay’lor Smith, 19, was caught on video pushing her friend, causing the girl to fall about 60 feet before hitting the water below. https://t.co/0gRQUbprKb
— KAPP-KVEW (@KAPPKVEW) March 18, 2019
Though the charge carries a maximum penalty of up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $5,000, it’s unlikely that Smith will be punished that severely when she is sentenced next week. Holgerson’s mother, Genelle Holgerson, told the court that neither she nor Jordan are interested in seeing Smith put behind bars.
As for Jordan, she is still recovering from her injuries, according to her mother. She has been receiving physical therapy and has developed anxiety, and Genelle says that both of them just want to put this incident behind them.
