8 Die in Crash on Taconic State Parkway #2

[Nova]

My recollection is the Bastardis filed suit before Dan sued the Bastardis and Hances. I believe the Hances countersuing the Schulers came last.

I think you've been gracious some of the time...I didn't find your comment lumping all the wimmins here together to be so.

Then I am truly sorry, tm. I thought it was clear that was just a joke.

Thanks for the sequence of lawsuits. I didn't realize the Bastardis had filed first.

Not that I blame them for that. Under our system they have a right to file a wrongful death suit and to seek compensation. Some of this may be personal, but everyone is also suing everybody else's insurance company.

So there's no guarantee the other suits wouldn't have been filed anyway, even if the Bastardis had restrained themselves.

 

[sharkeyes]

...watch the full press conference, which can be found on TaconicTragedy.com. I recommend it if you are intrigued by the case.

My main takeaway was voxrock is on the right track in talking about how the gas station Tylenol was probably just spin from Ruskin. Seeing him standing up there with the family and churning out the BS lessened my assumption of his impartiality. If you just watch the doc, you could get the sense that he's a neutral party.

Exactly! After watching the full press conference (how many times is Barbera going to state "they were not getting a divorce"). I think the doc is spun in a way to convolute the story and make it more mysterious.

Another thing I noticed - and I know it's just an AWFUL thing to say - but, the way Jay is hanging onto Daniel is creepy (I know, I know, she's comforting him), it's not really apparent in the presser clip in the doc....smack me down about it if ya want - I couldn't care less. And, Daniel does his best to sob, but no tears ever come out of his eyes. Yes, there is more to this than we will ever know.

 

[Nova]

It would depend on how a person clenches. I've cracked a couple of teeth over the years and have a very strong left jaw muscle that has affected my hearing. But, that was over *many* years before it started to show physical wear. Diane was young and it may not have been apparent. Believe me when I say, the jaw pain is horrific (!!!). Doing this is very often a sign of stress...

Given what my granddaughter's dentist said, it seemed she could see wear and tear that wasn't apparent to the naked eye of a lay person.

I have some problems with teeth-clenching myself (yes, entirely stress-related). Not too painful so far, but I basically know what you mean and I totally sympathize.

 

[Nova]

Exactly! After watching the full press conference (how many times is Barbera going to state "they were not getting a divorce"). I think the doc is spun in a way convolute the story and make it more mysterious.

Another thing I noticed - and I know it's just an AWFUL thing to say - but, the way Jay is hanging onto Daniel is creepy (I know, I know, she's comforting him), it's not really apparent in the presser clip in the doc....smack me down about it if ya want - I couldn't care less. And, Daniel does his best to sob, but no tears ever come out of his eyes. Yes, there is more to this than we will ever know.

I don't know that it's fair to Jay to call it creepy, but I do see what you mean and I'm not trying to "smack you down." My take is that Jay has been sucked into playing wife to Dan and mother to Bryan in many ways (no, not in bed), as well as wife and mother to her own family. I think that happened because she is a caring person who feels sorry for Dan and Bryan and loyal to Diane, whom she considered a friend. I also believe her revelations to the camera about Dan needing to step up show that the strain is getting to her.

I don't know her, of course, so I could be wrong.

 

[sharkeyes]

I don't know that it's fair to Jay to call it creepy...

Creepy is not the best adjective, I agree, maybe "unsettling" is better..

...but I do see what you mean and I'm not trying to "smack you down."

It's cool, I know you're not...I meant it in the general sense.

My take is that Jay has been sucked into playing wife to Dan and mother to Bryan in many ways (no, not in bed), as well as wife and mother to her own family. I think that happened because she is a caring person who feels sorry for Dan and Bryan and loyal to Diane, whom she considered a friend. I also believe her revelations to the camera about Dan needing to step up show that the strain is getting to her.

I don't know her, of course, so I could be wrong.

I agree. I tend to lean toward Jay really being in the dark regarding what triggered Diane's meltdown; however, Daniel, (and most likely the Hance's) know exactly what put the whole thing in motion.

 

[twinkiesmom]

Thanks for the sequence of lawsuits. I didn't realize the Bastardis had filed first.

Here's what I was able to find on the web:

Late 2009, Michael Bastardi Jr.'s sister Roseann Guzzo filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Schuler's estate and Hance.

6/11 Joseph Longo (brother of Bastardi passenger), also sued, not just Schuler's estate and Hance, but also Guzzo (Bastardi beneficiary)

Week of 7/18/11 Dan Schuler sues Warren Hance

7/22/11 Tallaricos (3rd car) sue Diane Schuler’s estate

7/25/11 Dan sues state of NY

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2011-07-27-wrongway-ny-crash-suit_n.htm

 

[Nova]

Here's what I was able to find on the web:

Late 2009, Michael Bastardi Jr.'s sister Roseann Guzzo filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against Schuler's estate and Hance.

6/11 Joseph Longo (brother of Bastardi passenger), also sued, not just Schuler's estate and Hance, but also Guzzo (Bastardi beneficiary)

Week of 7/18/11 Dan Schuler sues Warren Hance

7/22/11 Tallaricos (3rd car) sue Diane Schuler’s estate

7/25/11 Dan sues state of NY

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2011-07-27-wrongway-ny-crash-suit_n.htm

What a tangled web! Thanks for unraveling it, tm. I'm not sure I could have followed the sequence if I had read the article without your list as a guide.

In re the question above about Dan's current lawyer, that article says Schuler is represented by Kevin Grennan.

I could have sworn there was a report of Dan countersuing the Bastardis because we talked about the victims' car speeding and how that might be construed as partial liability.

ETA per this link:

http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/07/29/38574.htm

Dan Shuler is also suing the Bastardi estate and his own wife's estate on behalf of his children.

I may have lost count, but it looks like everybody is suing everybody now.

 

[Fairy1]

I really think if Dan had been having an affair, it would have come out by now. Not that I feel that would be a valid excuse or even an explanation for Diane's actions that day. I just believe if there was some kind of catalyst, that probably wasn't it.

All of the lawsuits make me sad. On one hand, I do understand the need for the survivors to have answers, but I just don't feel they're ever going to get them. Suppose, someday, Dan admits that they did have a fight before Diane left the campground. Would it be reasonable for anyone to believe he should have known Diane would do what she did? How could anyone have predicted such a thing?

 

[twinkiesmom]

OK, I found a blog that details 6 lawsuits, one filed by Bastardis in 2009
http://www.newyorkpersonalinjuryatt...ploads/2011/07/BastardiSummonsandComplant.pdf

and 5 more lawsuits this past July:

A lawsuit by Daniel Schuler, the husband of Diane Schuler, against the State of New York, alleging that the accident was caused by negligent roadway design, maintenance, and improper signage, resulting in the death of his 2 year old daughter Erin and injuries to his surviving son Bryan;
http://www.newyorkpersonalinjuryatt...uploads/2011/07/Schuler-CourtOfClaims-SC1.pdf

A second lawsuit by Daniel Schuler against his brother in law Warren Hance, claiming that Hance was responsible for the accident as the owner of the minivan driven by Hance's sister Diane Schuler;
This suit also includes his wife's estate and the Bastardis as defendants:
http://www.newyorkpersonalinjuryatt...ent/uploads/2011/07/SchulerSupremeCourtSC.pdf

A suit by Jackie Hance, the mother of Katie, 5, Alyson, 7 and Emma 8, alleging that due to Diane Schuler's negligent and intoxicated operation of the minivan, her daughters suffered "pre-impact fear and terror, fear of impending death, extreme horror and mental anguish." This lawsuit was commenced in the Suffolk County Supreme Court. (no link)

Last, Daniel Longo's brother Joseph sued both the Schuler Estate and Warren Hance for the wrongful death of his brother.
http://www.newyorkpersonalinjuryatt...t/uploads/2011/07/LongoSummonsandComplant.pdf

To be very blunt, both lawsuits by Daniel Schuler have a substantial likelihood of being dismissed, due to the incontrovertible fact that Diane Schuler's operation of the minivan in the wrong direction in an intoxicated condition with a blood alcohol concentration more than double the legal limit was the proximate cause (substantial factor) in causing the accident, and not improper signage, negligent design of the Taconic, or Mr. Hance's ownership of the vehicle.
http://www.nylegalblog.com/2011/07/fatal_crash_on_taconic_crash_r.html

(The missing one is the Tallrico's...)

 

[Mama-cita]

Good catch on that statement, I completely missed hearing it each time I've watched TSWWAD (a total of 5 times so far :banghead I tend to focus on Jay for some reason, I believe her - to a point, but I get a wierd vibe when she's looking at the "medical records" and states "does that say abscess?" and talks about the root canal, etc., her credibility is shaken, IMO, when she entertains the possibility that a tooth problem from 2005 would be a factor in Diane's behavior that day.

I believe Jackie or Warren Hance know something regarding the "why" in all of this. Not that I do not sympathize with their terrible loss; I cannot begin to imagine what they have gone through because of this. However, it would seem to me that either of them would at least say something...yes, I give Jackie credit for the magazine article, I guess I'm just nosey and want to know exactly what was said during the phone conversations, and they have every right to keep that info private, oh well. I sense they are protecting someone (maybe themselves), I don't know, maybe I'd do the same.

On the other hand, Daniel's "I'd marry her all over again," "she was the perfect wife and mother," "that's not true" and "she didn't drink", etc., statements are reminiscent of "methinks [thou] doth protest too much" from Hamlet.

I wonder if Daniel would be willing to submit to a polygraph - not that it would make any difference.....I have to stop watching the doc...damn you On Demand! :maddening:

SharkEyes, I absolutely love your posts! I totally agree with this post, especially the Hamlet "Methinks the lady doth protest..." analogy which is SPOT ON! I think Warren knows SOMETHING, because he talked to her for several minutes. He may have said they'd be able to find her by pinging the phone and that is why she ditched it. I wonder if more will come out via depo in the various lawsuits that are floating around, it shall be interesting to see.
Danny definitely knows what happened. I don't think he was having an affair. He was such a "princely" man (tongue firmly in cheek here!), but I guess it is entirely possible he found two women who would put up with his bullcrap???
I wonder what Jay thinks as time goes by. She has to know in her heart, somewhere, somehow, that Diane is responsible and Danny knows more than he is saying. I feel like she is trapped in this for Bryan's sake. She knows his dad didn't even want him (!) and I think she is trying to do right by him. At least he has her. Maybe she can provide some stability seeing as how he won't be getting any from his gutless wonder of a father.
I was looking at the taconictragedy website. Dominic Barbera sure is a piece of work. Glad he is suspended for now. After I watched his presser I had to shower, he is slimy. Like Jose Baez slimy. I think I need another shower...

 

[Mama-cita]

I still go back to why they didn't caravan back together? Even with two cars. Coming back from a trip like that my husband would totally follow me. We would stop for breakfast TOGETHER, fill up at the gas station TOGETHER. It is all too weird.

Another thing that interested me on the Bastardi's website was Mike's review of the HBO documentary. I am in total agreement with him that the Schuler family decision to show the death photos of Diane showed Danny's real LOVE for his wife...

IMO, MOO, and all that jazz

 

[SwampMama]

This is my one of my first posts so bear with me.
This whole case of Diane Schuler has caught my attention in so many ways. First of all it is so unbelievably tragic. There are so many aspects that I can relate to and I have read a lot on this case and watched the documentary but even with that I have no real understanding of what exactly happened (unknown details) and why (what was Diane thinking).

Background info on me (so you may understand why I think the way I do) includes a mother that I dont really speak to and didn't have at my 1st wedding and don't plan on including in my upcoming one either. She was never a part of my son's life and I planned it that way. So I can understand Diane's position on that. I don't see anything really odd about that. But I don't mind speaking about her, that doesn't bother me.
As for heavy drinkers...My father was one, I was married to one for over a decade, and my late hubby was a functioning alcoholic at the time of his death (died at home of medical causes, not alcohol and his drinking was very much related to PTSD of his role as a first responder during and after Hurricane Katrina. (I dont drink at all, can't stand the stuff, thank goodness). So I have insight as to how alcohol affects people and their loved ones. i know how we protect our alcoholics and have a bit of denial ourselves in our life with them.
Also since I lost my hubby i have experience into the devastation of losing a spouse suddenly. Unless you have been thru it you just can't imagine how many different ways it hits you, and how many times a day it slams you to the ground, and how much of a struggle it is to go on with life. It hurts so bad. (I survived though and will be married soon so life does go on but in the meantime it hurt like hell for quite a while.)
I can't even imagine how the family feels after such an enormous loss and how they find the strength to go on. If trying to find the answers or obsessing on the autopsy results that they just can't wrap their minds around helps them to fight to live another day, then more power to them. That's how they are coping and it gives them the fighting strength to go on. I can't fault them for that. The surviving child needs them and one day will have many questions and they need to be able to answer them.
As a first responder I have been at many accidents caused by alcohol and I cannot begin to tell you how it feels to be at a scene where a parent's drinking caused the death of a child. All that training and to be there and unable to do a thing because the child was killed instantly and all due to a parent's choice to drink and drive...... So senseless !!!
But this case gets to me because there are so many unknowns. I don't think it is just denial that is driving the family left behind in the wake of this tragedy. There are so many questions that I have about it too.
Why was the phone left on the interstate wall divider? I can't even chalk that up to her pulling over and throwing up because people ordinarily pull over to the opposite side of the road (passenger side) because that is where there is room allotted for pulling over. But then again, nothing makes much sense in this case.
Where was Daniel on Thursday night? He said he was at the campground yet his ezpass showed he didn't get there till Friday morning. That needs to be cleared up. He needs to come clean on that. He does strike me as a big man-child in that he depended on her so much to do everything.
Perhaps he also feels guilt for whatever he was doing that Thursday night when he wasn't at the campground where he should have been and certainly wasn't helping Diane who had her hands full. I would hope that in his lawsuit that HIS phone records come into question and we find out where he was and what part that played in all of this. I do think there is something there. Maybe Diane suspected he was up to something but wouldn't consider a divorce because she wouldn't put her kids thru a divorce or didn't want the stigma of divorce in a world that she so carefully controlled.
Now he is left behind, alone, to raise a child that he apparently hadn't wanted to have in the first place. That doesn't mean he doesn't love his child or that his child is unwanted now. He is clearly overwhelmed. Now he is having to man up and doesn't have Diane to hide behind, doesn't have Diane to take care of everything and make it better. I think he knows more than he is saying and I think he is realizing how much he has lost when he lost Diane. He realizes now what he took for granted then.
Those are the two things that I really want to know about, Daniel and the phone. If that phone was deliberately left there then it would explain a lot. If it was left there on purpose then I that would mean that there may have been some sort of disagreement and she was fleeing the family in a fit of alcoholic induced rage and determination. They had told her to stay put and they would come get her but she was past the point of rational thinking at that point and realizing that there would be huge consequences if she was busted drinking and driving with 5 kids in the car. The righteous indignation of a drunk is truly a force to contend with. So i can totally see her leaving the scene, panicking, going in the opposite direction from which her family would be coming. I don't think she deliberately went the wrong way on the highway in a suicide attempt as has been suggested, I think she was just disoriented and fleeing the consequences, going God only knows where. Maybe she was in blackout mode at this point.
Maybe she realized that she could lose her job and her kids over a DUI if she accepted help at that point when she was so clearly wasted and would do anything to prevent that because she did not want to let her kids down as her mother had done to her.
I feel she smoked the marijuana to deal with the nausea of a possible hangover (along with a possible headache or pain of the abscess). Maybe that didn't do it and she knew that only "the hair of the dog" was going to make her feel better and able to make the long trip ahead. She was determined to make it and not to rely on family coming to rescue her. Failure was not an option in her world -that just seems to be her way and her reason for controlling things as she did. So then she drank and maybe that didn't work fast enough or maybe it made her feel good enough to want some more, either way once it started there was no stopping.
Maybe she held off drinking as long as she could and then tried to make up for lost time by drinking a mass quantity.
Maybe she had drank earlier but had thrown some of it up and had miscalculated how much was in her system.
However it was, I think it hit her suddenly. Many people can relate to how quickly and easily that can happen. You took a drink to loosen up, then another and the next thing you know you are past the point of return and you didn't mean for it to have happened that way.
So as you see, I have many questions and no real answers. i can only speculate and give an educated guess or my opinion based upon my life experiences. But I don't see Diane as a monster, I don't see this as a suicide mission on her part. I see her as someone who made a horribly tragic mistake of epic proportions. I don't doubt that she loved those children.
It doesn't do any good to demonize her at this point, the only one who that will hurt is her surviving son who may someday read these words that we write here.
Thanks for listening.

 

[Nova]

I really think if Dan had been having an affair, it would have come out by now. Not that I feel that would be a valid excuse or even an explanation for Diane's actions that day. I just believe if there was some kind of catalyst, that probably wasn't it.

All of the lawsuits make me sad. On one hand, I do understand the need for the survivors to have answers, but I just don't feel they're ever going to get them. Suppose, someday, Dan admits that they did have a fight before Diane left the campground. Would it be reasonable for anyone to believe he should have known Diane would do what she did? How could anyone have predicted such a thing?

BBM: I think some of the lawsuits may be motivated by a desire for justice and some may motivated by a need to provide for the children of those killed (including Bryan). But I don't believe anyone is suing to search for the truth. In fact, some of the relatives of victims complained bitterly that Dan was preventing them from having "closure" by questioning the coroner's report; how will years of depositions serve them better?

 

[Nova]

OK, I found a blog that details 6 lawsuits, one filed by Bastardis in 2009....

To be very blunt, both lawsuits by Daniel Schuler have a substantial likelihood of being dismissed, due to the incontrovertible fact that Diane Schuler's operation of the minivan in the wrong direction in an intoxicated condition with a blood alcohol concentration more than double the legal limit was the proximate cause (substantial factor) in causing the accident, and not improper signage, negligent design of the Taconic, or Mr. Hance's ownership of the vehicle....

Is that the threshold for lawsuits in New York, tm, "proximate cause"? Can there be more than one "substantial factor"?

I ask because some states surprise me with the way they allow juries to assign percentages to various factors and assign some blame to what I consider minor contributors.

Given a chance, a jury might well feel sorry for Bryan and award him money even thought they know his mother is primarily to blame for the crash.

I also assume that suing Diane's estate is an attempt to preserve some of it for Bryan rather than letting the other victims take all of whatever she left.

 

[Mama-cita]

BBM: I think some of the lawsuits may be motivated by a desire for justice and some may motivated by a need to provide for the children of those killed (including Bryan). But I don't believe anyone is sue to search for the truth. In fact, some of the relatives of victims complained bitterly that Dan was preventing them from having "closure" by questioning the coroner's report; how will years of depositions serve them better?

BBM - Respectfully, I believe that they hope that since there is quite a bit of latitude involved in the questions allowed during the depo process, that somehow they are going to force Danny and the Hance's hand into answering the questions they've yet to answer thus far. I guess it will depend how Danny holds up under intense questioning, and whether the attorney who questions him is a pitbull or a yorkshire terrier. The Anthony family behavior during their depos in the Zenaida Gonzalez case spoke volumes to me and I relish the day when Casey has to sit for a depo with Mr. Morgan. I would think the Bastardi and Longo families are holding on to a shred of hope that Danny's hand will be forced in the depo process, and he will end up revealing more of what he knows (since it is obvious to many that he knows much more than he is saying). That is just my opinion though.

 

[Nova]

BBM - Respectfully, I believe that they hope that since there is quite a bit of latitude involved in the questions allowed during the depo process, that somehow they are going to force Danny and the Hance's hand into answering the questions they've yet to answer thus far. I guess it will depend how Danny holds up under intense questioning, and whether the attorney who questions him is a pitbull or a yorkshire terrier. The Anthony family behavior during their depos in the Zenaida Gonzalez case spoke volumes to me and I relish the day when Casey has to sit for a depo with Mr. Morgan. I would think the Bastardi and Longo families are holding on to a shred of hope that Danny's hand will be forced in the depo process, and he will end up revealing more of what he knows (since it is obvious to many that he knows much more than he is saying). That is just my opinion though.

Well, as tm points out, this would not be the first time I got the principals of this case confused.

I thought some of the Bastardi relatives complained on camera that Dan's persistence in questioning the coroner's verdict was offensive and a hardship to the relatives of survivors. How do we reconcile that complaint with the desire to conduct a "search for the truth" through the courts?

 

[Mama-cita]

Well, as tm points out, this would not be the first time I got the principals of this case confused.

I thought some of the Bastardi relatives complained on camera that Dan's persistence in questioning the coroner's verdict was offensive and a hardship to the relatives of survivors. How do we reconcile that complaint with the desire to conduct a "search for the truth" through the courts?

For me it will be similar to the Anthony Case. Cindy Anthony gave all her media cameos and press snippets, but she was quite tripped up during the interrogation by John Morgan and her demeanor spoke volumes. How will Daniel hold up to hours upon hours of questioning, when he is confronted with his lies, mis-statements, etc. I don't think he is the sharpest knife in the drawer and when he contradicts himself (which he will, A LOT IMO) a thirsty attorney will pounce like a lion...

 

[twinkiesmom]

Well, as tm points out, this would not be the first time I got the principals of this case confused.

I thought some of the Bastardi relatives complained on camera that Dan's persistence in questioning the coroner's verdict was offensive and a hardship to the relatives of survivors. How do we reconcile that complaint with the desire to conduct a "search for the truth" through the courts?

I don't understand why you are still questioning their motives. They want the truth even though it will cost them more pain going through these suits. They want to know why even if it is a long shot getting answers. Whatever money they get is not going to provide comfort.

If they had not sued first, they would still be defending against Danny's suits. It's a moot point. Danny's going to try to make everyone else pay rather than Diane.

I agree with Mama-cita that Daniel will not be able to hold up on cross.

As far as I'm concerned, he fired the first shot by hiring Barbera and holding the press conferences and going on Larry King and making the doco. Everything that follows now is pure karma. He's already starting to reap the whirlwind with Barbera (allegedly) taking the life insurance proceeds.

 

[rpd113]

I completely agree. (Except for the part about the crash being intentional; I can't get my mind around that.)

When I say intentional, I mean I think she made a conscious decision after 1:15pm. I just can't get past the facts of her apparently doing a u-turn back onto the Taconic (the wrong way) and going from driving recklessly to driving precisely in that last 15-20 minutes. And as much as the abandoned cell phone could have been a careless mistake, it also fits my theory.

I do not necessarily think she left the campground with that intention, but that she was 1) angry about something and got carried away with her drinking or 2) did this kind of thing more often than people think and finally paid the price or 3) some combination therein and it happened to be the day when she hit her breaking point or snapped or 4) something disturbing was said to her in those Hance calls and she made a conscious decision to end it all.

From what I've read about addictive and suicidal behaviors, it could have been more a split-second choice than we might assume -- especially for someone so tightly wound who consumed that volume of drink and drugs.

 

[rpd113]

I don't understand why you are still questioning their motives. They want the truth even though it will cost them more pain going through these suits.

We don't know whether they would have sued if Danny had just accepted the toxicology reports. They seem to be saying they would not have, though it's hard for me to believe they wouldn't have made a (rightful) claim on Diane's estate.

But now that Danny made his publicity blitz, the genie isn't going back in the bottle. May as well pull the scabs all the way off and "discover the truth" if at all possible.