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Infamous “Soho Karen” Miya Ponsetto has been a no-show in the civil case against her — prompting a Manhattan judge to blast her Monday over the sign of “disrespect.”
Ponsetto — who earned the moniker after she falsely accused a black teen of swiping her iPhone at a Manhattan hotel — hasn’t retained a lawyer or responded to the lawsuit filed against her by the boy’s family last year.
“There are ways to deal with this type of situation, and not showing up is one of them,” Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Shlomo Hagler said during a virtual hearing in the matter Monday.
“That’s the worst thing you can do,” he said. “It shows disrespect.”
The judge — declaring he will “wait for no man” — said Ponsetto’s lack of response wouldn’t hold the case up, and he set a schedule for discovery to be filed and for depositions to take place.
Jazz trumpeter Keyon Harrold and his teenage son filed suit against Ponsetto and other parties, including the Arlo Soho Hotel where the high-profile incident unfolded, in March of last year.
The California woman grabbed headlines after she was caught on video claiming teen Keyon Harrold Jr. stole her phone and then trying to tackle him in the lobby of the four-star hotel Dec. 26, 2020.
Jeffrey Van Etten, a lawyer representing the Arlo and a worker who detained Harrold, noted during Monday’s hearing that Ponsetto may not have appeared in the civil matter because she has a pending criminal case against her over the incident.
The 23-year-old is facing several charges, including unlawful imprisonment as a hate crime, and is in talks to strike a plea deal with the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office that would allow her to skirt jail time.
In the meantime, Ellie Silverman, a lawyer representing the Harrold family, confirmed they would be seeking a default judgement against her in the lawsuit.
Ponsetto could still hire a lawyer and respond to the suit at that point, or once her criminal matter is resolved.
The Manhattan Supreme Court suit accuses Ponsetto and hotel worker Chad Nathan of assault, battery, intentional infliction of emotional distress and false imprisonment, and the hotel of negligence and negligent hiring.
It alleges Nathan “stopped the plaintiffs while assisting Ponsetto, who was agitated and aggressive, and baselessly accusing Keyon Harrold Jr. of stealing her cellphone.”
“The plaintiffs were falsely accused because they were African American, and Defendant Nathan assumed they were guilty,” the court documents state.
The hotel, meanwhile, “treated plaintiffs differently from other guests and invitees in a place of public accommodation because of their race,” the suit charges.
The incident caused Harrold Jr. to feel “humiliation, embarrassment, emotional distress, feelings of racial stigmatization [and] an increased sense of vulnerability,” the court papers say.
The family is asking for unspecified damages.
Ponsetto has been seeking therapy since the incident, according to her criminal-defense attorney. She couldn’t be reached Monday, and her lawyer did not return a request for comment.
Her next hearing in the criminal case is set for April 11.
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