An attorney for 26-year-old Lauren Pazienza, who is accused of shoving 87-year-old Broadway vocal coach Barbara Gustern to her death, says his client is being targeted for her “socioeconomic status” because she is wealthy.
Attorney Arthur Aidala claimed in court last week that “pushing someone who’s on the sidewalk” isn’t the same as “pushing someone in front of a cliff” or “pushing someone in front of a moving train,” according to Vanity Fair. Aidala also said that Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s office was overcharging Pazienza with manslaughter.
“The D.A. goes out of their way to undercharge a case, and in this particular case they’re overcharging,” Aidala reportedly said in court last week.
Bragg is notorious for undercharging cases, a fact highlighted by the widow of a slain police officer during her husband’s funeral, The Daily Wire previously reported.
“You have the whole nation on gridlock. And although you won’t be here anymore, I want you to live through me. The system continues to fail us. We are not safe anymore, not even the members of the service [NYPD]. I know you were tired of these laws, especially the ones from the new DA. I hope he is watching you speak through me,” said Dominique Luzuriaga, wife of slain New York Police Department officer Jason Rivera.
The New York Post reported that Pazienza is the daughter of Daniel Pazienza, runs a top cesspool company in Long Island that, according to its website, has operated for “over 3 generations.” The outlet noted that Daniel and his wife Caroline “frequently traveled, vacationing in Aruba, Paris, France, and at a four-star hotel in Key Largo, Florida, over the years, according to photos on Facebook.”
The outlet suggested Pazienza was a “socialite” who attended events and parties such as New York society magazine Avenue’s 40th-anniversary party in 2015. She also reportedly attended art gallery openings and exhibitions.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, Pazienza turned herself in to police on Tuesday, 12 days after the unprovoked attack that left Gustern with a head injury that resulted in her death on March 16. Gustern was a famed vocal coach who trained Broadway stars and famed musicians such as Blondie singer Debbie Harry.
Pazienza was charged with manslaughter and was behind bars as of Wednesday, Inside Edition reported. The outlet reported on what it called a “disturbing timeline” following the attack.
“Police say Lauren Pazienza, 26, walked back to the scene six minutes after shoving 87-year-old Barbara Maier Gustern to the ground and watched as the ambulance arrived on the scene,” the outlet reported.
Police also said that Gustern was conscious long enough to say that her assailant had crossed the street and called her a “b****” before shoving her. “Authorities say Pazienza and her fiance, who works for Microsoft, got into the subway at Penn Station, transferred at Times Square, then took the train to their apartment in Queens, leaving a digital trail with the fiance’s Metrocard,” Inside Edition noted.