UPDATE: Cat thrown from 3rd floor balcony 'miraculously' survives

NEWARK -- A 19-year-old woman is accused of throwing a cat off a third-floor balcony in an incident that was captured in a video posted on social media, authorities said Saturday.

Tikeemah J. Lassiter (Photo: Dept. of Public Safety)

Tikeemah J. Lassiter, of Clinton, was visiting relatives in Newark when she tossed the animal off the balcony on the 300 block of South Orange Avenue Thursday, according to city Public Safety Director Anthony Ambrose.

A concerned citizen alerted city police about a video showing Lassiter throw the cat, Ambrose said. She was arrested Saturday and charged with animal cruelty.

The cat survived and was turned over to the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, officials said. A veterinarian would examine the cat before the agency determines where to place the animal, which did not belong to Lassiter.

In the video, a woman is seen hurling the cat off the balcony to a sidewalk below. The animal does not move on the ground in the footage shared online. The video also captured laughter as Lassiter allegedly threw the cat.

She was also charged for an assault warrant issued by New Jersey Transit police, according to authorities. Details of that incident were not immediately available.

Noah Cohen may be reached at ncohen@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @noahyc. Find NJ.com on Facebook.