Teen who admitted to shoving her friend off Washington bridge will spend 2 days in jail and serve 38 days on a work crew
A judge granted a Washington state mother's request to lock up a young woman, who admitted to shoving her daughter off a 60-foot bridge, for "as many days in jail as her daughter" spent in the hospital.
Tay'Lor Smith was expected to walk out of court on Wednesday to begin a promised plea bargain of 60 days of electronic home confinement, 30 days of community work crew and 30 days of community service. Instead, Genelle Holgerson, the mother of Jordan Holgerson, asked the judge "to force" Smith to "spend as many days in jail" as her daughter spent confined to a hospital bed, while recovering from the incident.
In a surprise turn of events, the judge went against the planned plea agreement and sent Smith to jail for 48 hours.
Once she completes her confinement, Smith will have to serve an additional 38 days on a work crew.
The sentencing comes one week after Smith pleaded guilty to a charge of reckless endangerment, which is considered a gross misdemeanor that is punishable by up to a year in jail and a maximum fine of $5,000.
Smith, who was 18 at the time, pushed Jordan Holgerson off a bridge over the Lewis River at Moulton Falls Regional Park near Vancouver, Washington, on Aug. 7, 2018.
Jordan Holgerson, then 16, plunged the equivalent of three stories before belly-flopping into the water below. She suffered "significant injuries" including six broken ribs, a punctured lung and air bubbles in her chest, authorities said.
The incident was captured on a cellphone video that went viral on social media, but has since been removed. Surveillance camera video also shows the moment Smith shoved Jordan Holgerson off the bridge's ledge.
"Taylor is not a mean person. She has a big heart," Smith's grandmother, Debbie McEldowney, told ABC News. "She's talked endlessly about Jordan and how bad she felt as she went to the hospital right after the incident and Genelle kicked her out."
According to the initial complaint filed in Clark County district court last year, Jordan Holgerson told authorities that Smith was the one who pushed her and that it was unwanted. Smith admitted to pushing Jordan Holgerson off the bridge, but told authorities she did so in an attempt to help her friend overcome her fear and not to injure her.
In an exclusive interview with ABC News on "Good Morning America," Smith said she didn't consider the repercussions beforehand.
"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 told "GMA" co-anchor Michael Strahan. "I thought she would be fine."
Smith's grandmother said she was more frustrated with the lies told about her granddaughter than the sentence.
"We all do really stupid things and it was a bad and unfortunate decision," McEldowney said. "She'll be fine. I just wish that all the lies hadn't happened and then they made her look like a monster. ... I'm not saying Taylor doesn't deserve some kind of consequence of her action, but not lies. And there were so many lies in that courtroom."
