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Woman accused of shoving beloved Broadway singing coach arrested for manslaughter
By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 22, 2022
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Mar 22, 2022
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A Long Island woman has been arrested and charged with fatally shoving a beloved Broadway singing coach earlier this month.
Police said Tuesday that Lauren Pazienza, 26, was arrested for in connection with the death of 87-year-old Barbara Maier Gustern. Pazienza, from Port Jefferson, has been charged with manslaughter. An NYPD spokesperson had no further information about the suspect Tuesday morning.
Barbara Maier Gustern
The incident happened just before 8:30 p.m. on March 10. Gustern was walking near West 28th Street between 8th and 9th avenues, close to her apartment in Chelsea, when a female suspect shoved her to the ground. Gustern hit her head, and the suspect then fled the scene.
According to The New York Times, Gustern was awake initially after the attack, and told a friend at the scene, “I’ve never been hit so hard in my life." She also reportedly told police that her assailant "shouted a derogatory term before assaulting her," though the details of that term have not been released.
The suspect who allegedly fatally shoved Barbara Maier Gustern
DCPI
Gustern slipped into unconsciousness after that, and was taken to Bellevue Medical Center. Her grandson later wrote on Facebook that she had suffered "traumatic damage to the left side of her brain." She died on March 15, five days after the attack.
Gustern was a successful singing coach who worked with the likes of performance artist Diamanda Galás, Blondie's Debbie Harry, and the cast of Daniel Fish’s 2019 Broadway revival of Oklahoma!
Her grandson wrote on Facebook that her funeral will take place on March 26th at 2 p.m. at Holy Apostles Church, and "all are welcome."
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Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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