Correction:Lawyer here - Not a mistake at all. She would be liable as an accessory, under aiding and abetting. The exact crime varies between common law jurisdictions, but she is laughing along when Michelle is speeding and terrorizing the other driver. In common law jurisdictions, that would be viewed as encouragement of Michelle's committing a crime (she explicitly says she didn't tell Michelle to stop), which is a form of abetting, and indeed carries criminal charges.
You asked about the legality of the situation and I gave you an answer from a legal perspective. Also - having advised clients before in similar situations, I'd say it's common for the party more at fault (here, Michelle) to try to pin blame on the other person if they feel otherwise their friend is going to get away with it, leaving them to face the rap. If she mentions it (or even if she doesn't mention it, any decent prosecutor would suggest it), that's going to be taken into account.
Correction: Lawyer here - Not a mistake at all. She would be liable as an accessory, under aiding and abetting. The exact crime varies between common law jurisdictions, but she is laughing along when Michelle is speeding and terrorizing the other driver. In common law jurisdictions, that would be viewed as encouragement of Michelle's committing a crime (she explicitly says she didn't tell Michelle to stop), which is a form of abetting, and indeed carries criminal charges.
swordfish
And you think they told the cops Natalie was just sitting there laughing the whole time?
brianjr0412
You asked about the legality of the situation and I gave you an answer from a legal perspective. Also - having advised clients before in similar situations, I'd say it's common for the party more at fault (here, Michelle) to try to pin blame on the other person if they feel otherwise their friend is going to get away with it, leaving them to face the rap. If she mentions it (or even if she doesn't mention it, any decent prosecutor would suggest it), that's going to be taken into account.
swordfish