The family of famed Broadway vocal coach Barbara Gustern are demanding answers from the woman arrested for fatally shoving her on a street in New York City.
Lauren Pazienza, 26, surrendered herself to police and was charged with manslaughter on Tuesday after a 12-day search for the person responsible for assaulting Ms Gustern.
The 87-year-old veteran voice coach died after being shoved from behind and hitting her head on the pavement as she hailed a taxi near her apartment in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighbourhood on 10 March.
Ms Gustern’s family are now calling for Ms Pazienza to reveal a motive in the attack.
“I’d like to stress, innocent until proven guilty. [But] If she did do this, then I would like answers,” her grandson, AJ Gustern, told WCBS-TV following Ms Pazienza’s arrest.
“But I’m still praying for you, and the karmic wave that you have taken on is incredible, so god help you.”
Ms Pazienza, an events planner from Port Jefferson, New York, was arrested after police circulated surveillance camera images of the woman believed to have attacked Ms Gustern.
Ms Gustern was initially conscious after the 10 March attack, and according to The New York Times told a friend at the scene: “I’ve never been hit so hard in my life.”
She described her attacker to police and said they “shouted a derogatory term” at her prior to the assault, before being rushed to the hospital, where she died five days later.
Ms Pazienza’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, defended her after she appeared in court on Tuesday, telling reporters: “She’s a very moral, right, just person. She was crying. She was in pain. She’s accused of a very horrible act.”
Mr Aidala said Ms Pazienza’s parents would pay for bail, which was set at $500,000 (£379,300) by a judge on Tuesday.
He said he also “anticipated” a plea of not guilty, with Ms Pazienza scheduled to appear in court again on 26 March.
She could face 25 years in prison if found guilty.
Ms Gustern was beloved in the entertainment industry, having coached numerous musical, opera and popular music stars including Blondie frontwoman Debbie Harry, drag artist and playwright Taylor Mac, feminist punk vocalist Kathleen Hanna, and cast members in the 2019 revival of the Broadway musical Oklahoma!
AJ Gustern described his grandmother as “a force of nature. A little neutron star, right, a tiny ball of energy, building community everywhere she went”.
Ms Gustern’s funeral is scheduled for 26 March at the Church of the Holy Apostles in Chelsea, where she was a a frequent volunteer at the church’s soup kitchen.
