The Washington woman apparently seen in a video pushing a 16-year-old girl off a 60-foot bridge was charged with reckless endangerment on Friday.
Per ABC News, prosecutors filed the charges along with a declaration of probable cause from the arresting officer. In it, the officer wrote “it is clear that Taylor Smith engaged in conduct which created a substantial risk of death and resulted in serious physical injury to Jordan Holgerson.”
The news comes hours after Smith, 18, appeared on ABC’s “Good Morning America” to give her side of the story. Smith claimed she didn’t intend to hurt Holgerson and that she just wanted Holgerson to overcome her fear of jumping off the bridge.
“She wanted to jump and she was scared and she had asked me to give her a push, and I didn’t think about the consequences,” Smith said Friday. “I thought she would be fine.”
As CrimeOnline previously reported, the August 7 video shows Holgerson hesitant to jump off a bridge in Moulton Falls as someone off camera counts “3…2…1.” Seconds later, Smith is allegedly seen violently pushing Holgerson, causing her to plummet into waters 60 feet below.
The 16-year-old was released from the hospital on August 10 after being treated for a punctured lung, injured trachea, and air that became trapped inside the lining of her lungs.
READ More: VIDEO: Teen suffers serious injuries after friend pushes her off 60-foot bridge
New footage obtained by NBC News shows the moments leading up to Holgerson’s near-fatal fall. The newest video apparently shows the teen telling her friends to “stop” and “wait” in the 15 minutes before she was pushed off the bridge. At one point, a fed-up Smith can be heard telling Holgerson that she is going to push her because Holgerson promised she was going to jump.
“I don’t care. I’d jump in there to save you if anything happens. Jordan, I got you,” the woman is reportedly heard saying.
Smith went on to tell “Good Morning America” Friday that she loves Holgerson and that she’ll take any punishment she receives.
“I accept whatever the prosecutors think is best for me, considering I caused not only bodily harm but emotional trauma as well,” she said. “But I just hope for the best.”
[Featured Image: KOIN video screengrab]