Suspect In Death Of Broadway Vocal Coach Barbara Gustern Pleads Not Guilty, Has Bail Revoked – Update

Greg Evans
·5 min read
2
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.
  • Oops!
    Something went wrong.
    Please try again later.

2ND UPDATE, May 10: Lauren Pazienza, the woman accused of fatally shoving Broadway vocal coach Barbara Gustern on a New York sidewalk in March, pleaded not guilty to the charges Tuesday and is being held without bail.

As part of the plea hearing in New York State Supreme Court on one count of first-degree manslaughter and two counts of second-degree assault, the judge remanded Pazienza into custody after revoking her $500,000 bail, ruling she was a flight risk.

More from Deadline

According to the prosecutors, on March 10 the 87-year-old Gustern had just left her apartment building in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan at around 8:30 p.m. when the women they identify as Pazienza crossed the street, yelled “Bitch” and pushed Gustern to the ground. Gustern’s head hit the pavement, and she began bleeding profusely, at which point Pazienza, prosecutors say, she continued “briskly” walking away.

A passing bicyclist helped Gustern back to her apartment building, where she remained conscious just long enough to describe her attacker. Gustern was transported by EMS to Bellevue Hospital, where she died five days later while still in a coma.

According to an Associated Press report, Assistant District Attorney Justin McNabney said today during the hearing that Pazienza became upset that night after she and her fiancé were told to leave Chelsea Park, where they had been drinking wine as part of celebrating the 100-day mark before their wedding. Pazienza came upon Gurstern as she was walking away and pushed her to the ground, McNabney said.

UPDATED, March 25: As expected, Lauren Pazienza, the woman accused of fatally shoving Broadway vocal coach Barbara Maier Gustern to the pavement in Manhattan, will be released from custody at Rikers Island today, her parents having posted bail this morning.

Pazienza’s attorney Arthur Aidala addressed reporters today outside Manhattan criminal court, confirming the bail posting. Pazienza did not attend the hearing.

Pazienza, a 26-year-old former events coordinator from Long Island most recently living in Queens, turned herself in to police Tuesday after nearly two weeks of attempting to elude capture, according to an account detailed in court by an assistant district attorney. Pazienza was arrested on charges of manslaughter and assault.

According to The New York Post, Aidala told reporters today, “Nobody doubts that this is a tragedy,” and added that his team will “get to the bottom of what really happened that day after we have all the evidence that’s in possession of the prosecutors….”

Pazienza is expected back in court on April 25 for arraignment.

PREVIOUS, March 23 Lauren Pazienza, the woman accused of fatally shoving Broadway vocal coach Barbara Maier Gustern, remained in custody as of this morning after a $500,000 cash bail was set at an arraignment hearing Tuesday in Manhattan.

Arthur Aidala, the suspect’s attorney who arranged for her surrender to police, said during the court hearing that the DA had overcharged his client, telling the judge that “pushing someone who’s on the sidewalk” is not the same as “pushing someone in front of a moving train.”

Addressing reporters, Aidala — whose clients have included Harvey Weinstein, Rudolph Giuliani and Roger Ailes — said, “Whether it was a push or whether it was a shove or whether it was a kick or whether someone tripped … the evidence is not very solid on that at all.”

In an interview Wednesday with local NBC affiliate WNBC, Aidala said Pazienza’s legal team is awaiting evidence discovery from the DA’s office, and that he expects Pazienza to be released on bail in the coming days. The bail was set at $500,000 cash or a $1 million bond.

Details about the March 10 incident and the aftermath emerged at the hearing Tuesday, with the DA’s office presenting a general timeline of what it believes transpired. According to the prosecutors, the 87-year-old Gustern had just left her apartment building in the Chelsea neighborhood of Manhattan at around 8:30 p.m. when the women they identify as Pazienza crossed the street, yelled “Bitch” and pushed Gustern to the ground. Gustern’s head hit the pavement, and she began bleeding profusely, at which point Pazienza, the DA says, continued “briskly” walking away.

A passing bicyclist helped Gustern back to her apartment building, where she remained conscious just long enough to describe her attacker. Gustern was transported by EMS to Bellevue Hospital, where she died five days later while still in a coma.

According to prosecutors, Pazienza remained in the vicinity of the attack for about 20 to 30 minutes, observing the arrival of the ambulance. They said she also was observed having a physical altercation with a man they believe is her fiancé. The couple, based on surveillance footage, next went to Manhattan’s Penn Station, where they boarded a subway train to their condo in Astoria, Queens.

Over the next two weeks, as police and friends of Gustern widely circulated surveillance video and photos of the suspect on social media, Pazienza made “every effort to avoid apprehension,” prosecutors said. They said she scrubbed her social media pages, left her cell phone with an aunt and moved back to her parents’ home in Port Jefferson, Long Island. When police, acting on at least one anonymous tip, questioned Pazienza’s father at the home on Monday, he allegedly denied his daughter was home and refused them entry.

Pazienza, accompanied by Aidala, turned herself in at the NYPD’s Chelsea district house Tuesday morning, and was arraigned later that afternoon. She is expected back in court for a hearing on Friday.

Best of Deadline

Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Click here to read the full article.