Lauren Pazienza indicted in fatal shoving of voice coach, held without bail

Former Port Jefferson resident Lauren Pazienza was ordered held without bail on Tuesday morning after she pleaded not guilty to an indictment charging her with manslaughter and assault in the death of well-known 87-year-old voice coach Barbara Gustern in March.

During a court hearing in Manhattan State Supreme Court, Judge Felicia Mennin ordered Pazienza back to jail after prosecutors with the Manhattan District Attorney's Office argued she was a flight risk. The judge revoked her previously posted $500,000 bail from when she was first arrested back in March. 

Pazienza pleaded not guilty to the charges during her arraignment. She was handcuffed before being led out of court to a holding cell after her arraignment.

The indictment charged that Pazienza, 26, gave Gustern a forceful shove on the sidewalk outside the victim's home on March 10, causing Gustern to fall and strike either a fence or cement.

Gustern, a famed voice coach who taught the likes of singer Debbie Harry and members of the 2019 cast of “Oklahoma,” died March 15 of her injuries, according to police

During the relatively brief court appearance, prosecutors spelled out for the court more details about the events in a nearby park — which preceded the fateful encounter between Pazienza and Gustern on 28th Street — leading up to what amounted to an angry tantrum by the defendant just before her pushing Gustern.

To celebrate their upcoming wedding in June, Pazienza and her fiance planned to visit some Chelsea art galleries. Pazienza had several glasses of wine, after which she and her fiance went to a nearby park to eat meals they bought from a food cart, prosecutors said.

However, after a male park employee told the couple they had to leave because the park was closing, Pazienza became angry, started cursing, threw her food onto her fiance and stormed out of the park, officials said. According to the prosecution account, the fiance then packed up the food and decided to go back to the couple’s apartment in Astoria.

It was on 28th Street, prosecutors alleged, that Pazienza crossed the street, walked directly toward Gustern, called her a ”bitch” and gave the woman a shove, which knocked her down.

The impact caused Gustern’s head to bleed, and Pazienza left without giving aid, officials said.

A passing cyclist who witnessed the incident stopped to help Gustern, who at that point was conscious, and walked her back to her friend’s apartment, prosecutors said. Gustern told the cyclist repeatedly that she had never been pushed that hard before in her life, officials said.

Police didn't immediately know who the suspect in the alleged attack was, except for some video images of the alleged assailant that depicted a woman with long dark hair and dressed in a dark coat.

Prosecutors said that NYPD investigators got an anonymous tip a few days later that Pazienza was hiding at her parents' home in Port Jefferson.

Prosecutors said Pazienza's trip to Long Island and her delay in surrendering for several days supported the argument that she was a flight risk, in addition to the fact that she faces 25 years in prison if convicted of the first-degree manslaughter charge.

Defense attorney Arthur Aidala didn’t respond to telephone messages and emails seeking comment about the developments and what his legal strategy might be.

By Anthony M. DeStefano

tony.destefano@newsday.comtonynewsday

Anthony M. DeStefano has been a reporter for Newsday since 1986 and covers law enforcement, criminal justice and legal affairs from its New York City offices.