Instagrammer spared jail time after endangering public by throwing chair from high-rise

Marcella Zoia became popularly known as "Chair Girl" after she performed the extremely dangerous prank of tossing a chair from the balcony of a high-rise. Since the incident last year, Zoia faced criticism for her action. She was charged for endangering life for which she pleaded guilty. Prosecutors wanted a six-month prison sentence for the incident. However, Zoia got away without a jail term. Zoia's lawyer believes that the sentence she received was a fair one.

In February 2019, Zoia and her friends took a video of the Instagram personality throwing a chair from the balcony of a high-rise building in Toronto, Canada. The video captured the trajectory of the chair until it hit the bottom of the building. Before tossing the chair, Zoia did not check to see if the furniture might fall on any person on the pavement below. The chair hit the pavement near Gardiner Expressway, which is a very busy road in Toronto.

The video was shared first on Snapchat. It eventually became viral on Facebook where it received heavy criticism. Local authorities were notified of the video that endangered the public. They were able to track down Zoia and charge her with mischief related offences. In November last year, she pleaded guilty to the charge of mischief endangering life.

However, since she entered her plea, her sentencing had been pushed back multiple times due to the COVID-19 lockdown. Finally on Tuesday, July 21, Zoia was sentenced over teleconference. The court sentenced her to 150 hours of community service and a two-year probation. She was also fined 2,000 Canadian dollars (£1,165). The 20-year-old now has an adult criminal record.

According to BBC, Zoia's lawyer, Gregory Leslie, said his client was happy with the verdict. She was worried that she may be sentenced to six months in prison as the prosecutors had pushed for. Instead, Zoia got away with a lenient sentence. Leslie had earlier told journalists that his client was under the influence of alcohol and was under peer pressure when she flung the chair.

The controversial social media personality became more popular after the incident. Zoia made an appearance in a music video by musician Drake. However, due to public outcry, the part of the video featuring her was removed.