Taylor Smith Pleads Not Guilty to Reckless Endangerment After Pushing Friend Off 60-Foot Bridge
An 18-year-old Washington girl who was seen on video pushing her friend off a three-story bridge has pleaded not guilty in a courtroom packed with spectators.
Taylor Smith has been charged with misdemeanor reckless endangerment for shoving 16-year-old Jordan Holgerson from the 60-foot span on Aug. 7, leaving the high school student with broken ribs and a punctured lung.
Cellphone video of the incident was uploaded to the internet, where it quickly went viral. Smith said she pushed her friend to help her get over her fear. Holgerson, however, told investigators she didn't want to be forced into the water.
The teens were part of a group standing on the bridge in Vancouver, where some jumped into the Lewis River far below.
The judge at Friday's arraignment ordered Smith to have no contact with Holgerson. She was also ordered not to leave the area, except to attend school.
Both girls declined to speak with reporters at the courthouse.
“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.
The video shows Holgerson falling, screaming all the way down.
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