Murder suspect accused of throwing woman off bridge in October had arraignment hearing Friday

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Columbia man accused of throwing a woman off a bridge and killing her had an arraignment hearing on Monday.

Jessie Williams, 32, is accused of pushing Kaylen Schmit off the Highway 63 bridge near Clark Lane and killing her on Oct. 4. Schmit, 24, fell 38 feet into a wooded area and died hours later at a hospital.

He is charged with first-degree murder. Williams appeared in the Boone County Courthouse by video from the Missouri Department of Corrections. He is being held without bond. Williams' next court date was not yet released on Casenet.

A witness told police in October that they saw Williams and Schmit in a nearby homeless camp arguing before the incident, according to a probable cause statement. The pair were fighting over Schmit's belongings, the witness said.

Another witness told police she had seen Williams and Schmit walking on the overpass. Another witness said he saw Williams grabbing Schmit's legs to throw her over the guardrail and that he was "100% no doubt trying to kill her," according to the statement.

Police say Williams answered questions indicating he pushed Schmit from the bridge because he had mental issues and was sick. However, the statement does not say Williams directly confessed.

Williams was on parole for the August 2018 stabbing of a homeless man. He was previously in prison from December 2019 until Aug. 8 this year.

According to CaseNet, Williams was convicted of two assaults in 2019. He was charged in 2019 for handcuffing himself to a Boone County officer and attacking and choking her.