The lawyer for the woman captured on video hurling a chair off a downtown Toronto condo balcony insists she's sorry--though he says the press may not believe it.
"People deal with remorse in different ways," Greg Leslie told NEWSTALK 1010 Friday. "The way that she dealt with it, I would have rather it not be that way, by smiling and everything. She's just young."
19-year-old Marcella Zoia smiled for reporters and photographers during a post-court appearance Frappuccino run in February. Zoia is charged with mischief endangering life, mischief to damage to property over $5,000 and being a common nuisance.
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Zoia did not make the trip to court Friday where Leslie appeared on her behalf. Leslie received new disclosure and booked a return to court on June 14.
Leslie says he and the Crown are "quite a distance apart" about how they would like they case to move forward. Leslie has said he'd like to settle the matter to avoid a trial.
As the case moves through the courts, Leslie says Zoia is living "kind of off the radar". But Zoia's has remained fairly active on Instagram since her arrest, especially on Instagram Stories, where images and video disappear 24 hours after posting. In recent days Zoia's account has shared stories promoting a Toronto night club, partying with friends and showing who whitens her teeth. Leslie seemed not to know about the online activity. Three hours after Leslie spoke with NEWSTALK 1010, Zoia posted a story showing off a Louis Vuitton clutch.
Marcella Zoia/Instagram
Leslie says Zoia is trying to enrol in a college program, though it does not appear that she has a particular field of study in mind. The summer academic session at GTA colleges begin in early May.
In an Instagram Story last month, Zoia seemed to contradict comments by her lawyer that she had recently been kicked out dental school. Leslie says it wasn't dental school but dental hygienist's school.
Marcella Zoia/Instagram
Leslie continues to insist that Zoia is a young woman who caved to peer pressure. He says there's a video from the incident in which you hear people egging Zoia on, cheering "throw the chair" and "do it".
While throwing the chair was a poor decision, Leslie says it was not a decision fuelled by drugs or alcohol. He says Zoia was not intoxicated. He does not explain what brought Zoia to the condo near Harbour St and York St, but says the video seen around the world was not shot at the end of an all-night party.