The woman accused of fatally shoving a famed Broadway vocal coach will stand trial beginning in October, according to the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office.
Lauren Pazienza, 26, of Port Jefferson, has been charged with first-degree manslaughter and second-degree assault in connection with the death of 87-year-old Barbara Maier Gustern, according to police.
Prosecutors say that on the night of March 10, Pazienza pushed Gustern to the ground in an unprovoked attack on West 28th Street in Chelsea, causing Gustern to hit her head. Pazienza fled the scene, according to police.
An eyewitness helped Gustern, bringing her into the lobby of her apartment building that was a short distance away, according to prosecutors. Before losing consciousness, Gustern said that Pazienza had shoved her “as hard as she had ever been hit in her life," according to the Manhattan DA’s office.
Gustern was rushed to the hospital and died on March 15 when doctors removed her from life support, prosecutors said.
Pazienza turned herself into police approximately two weeks after the attack. She is being held on Rikers Island.