And then ignored her children's screams of terrors and pleas to pull over as traffic was coming head on. An exploration of the mystery surrounding the tragic 2009 wrong-way crash that killed a mother and seven others on NY's Taconic Parkway. Now not only is she drunk and high but she's really really mad. This contrasts with the aftermath of her actions. C'mon. She has time on the drive to ponder things, and seems to be driving aimlessly. The primary interviewees are Schuler's husband, Daniel, and sister-in-law, Jay, who are convinced that the toxicology report showing Schuler's high level of alcohol and THC intoxication was inaccurate, or that Schuler did not knowingly consume the intoxicants. Daniel told investigators the family usually kept a bottle of vodka at the property, claiming a single bottle could last for years. Investigators later found the vodka bottle in the TrailBlazer. I don't think they were trying to find a way to medically excuse, but I do think they were sympathetic to Diane. It has all of the hallmarks of intention in it. Poisoned Apple: What happened to Aunt Diane? Create an account to follow your favorite communities and start taking part in conversations. Evidence is mounting that someone had to have known Diane was a danger. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. I'm glad the Bastardis sued and got some compensation for the loss of their loved ones. In sharp contrast to the toxicology report, Schuler had no known history of substance abuse or psychological problems and was generally known as a loving and stable wife and mother. There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane. That last weekend she was stuck with a long drive and five kids while her cluck of a husband took off with just the dog. I don't live in the US so don't recall much media coverage of this case. Schuler's surviving husband, Daniel, spent years denying Schuler was intoxicated at the time of the accident and insisted she was an upstanding wife and mother. The "last hurrah " at McDonalds theory is just chilling if that was her intention.Jesus. The HBO documentary There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane tracked Daniel's journey to clear his wife's name. To me, this is all pretty cut and dry - she had been unhappy/depressed in her life for quite some time - raising kids with a deadbeat husband after having her own mother walk out at an early age. It messed her up. Diane was found to have an insane amount of alcohol and weed in her system at the time of the crash, and her family somehow doesn't believe her findings. She's drinking this vodka quickly and in large gulps because she can't let the kids see this. TOP CRITIC. This was the morning/early afternoon, in a car, with a bunch of small children. Michael Bastardi Jr., who wrote a book about the experience, remains convinced that the Schuler and Hance families can provide some details to shed light on the events of that day. 2011. I think she was drinking/smoking for liquid courage and was resolved to murder-suicide that day. It was strange that they featured her four high school friends and one person who seemed just a neighbor on the documentary but no real intimates or who knew her in her daily life. Was she a habitual drinker, and if so, did her husband and other family members know? Worth the watch. This story has been shared 100,023 times. Schulers fatal crash contributed to the passing of the Child Passenger Protection Act. That child knew she was in trouble. Okay, guys, if we believe this 2009 NY POST article, Diane was a secret alcoholic who drank basically every day at a bar for at least two years and in the last few months of her life was miserable in her marriage and felt trapped in it. Days after the accident you could still see a few items (like a tennis ball) on the side of the road. I work in an ER and the regular daily drinkers are walking and talking to me in the 200 and 300s.. even the 400s. Families always feed on the carcasses. I would side with you that it was murder/suicide. I agree with most of your points except that I don't think the goal of the documentary filmmakers was to find a medical reason for what she did. Leaving the phone behind on the side of the road and then getting in the minivan with the kids for the final time looks pretty bad. I'm not going to speculate on any specific molestation etc. Since this aired I have read comments saying that it could have been that Diane blacked out after taking Ambien. That was when he mentioned the loss of his daughter. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs. Those accents. On that bright sunny Sunday 10 years ago, July 26, 2009, families were shattered. Hello and thank you for being a DL contributor. I want to clear her name, he said. That is a big jump for someone who drinks too heavily but generally keeps good outward appearances. One of the eyewitnesses to the crash said that there was no more bobbing and weaving and that the car was straight as a pin, Dianes eyes didnt blink and she was staring straight ahead and the witness thought the driver looked like someone determined to kill themselves right before the crash occurred. After all, Princess Diana's mother abandoned her at 6 years old, and look what a nut she turned out to be. And then, for whatever reason, Diane decided to drop her phone and sped off to die. Something happened on the trip that made her snap. Dua Lipa, 27, confirms her romance with Rita Ora's ex Romain Gavras, 41, as they leave Saint Laurent's Paris Fashion Week show Advertisement 'Please say there's going to be a sequel!': In There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, award-winning director Liz Garbus (see below) explores the facts and speculation surrounding this tragic accident. She was angry at her husband for being such a useless loser. Someone suggested that she wasn't looking for pain meds in there but for alcohol. She also tested positive for marijuana use. Are these the people who snap? She drank some vodka right out of the bottle and probably smoked some pot. It's obviously sad for the kids and the guys she killed, but that incredibly tightly-wound, perfectionist women seemed like a time bomb. You are a PARENT and you drive when you are drunk and high? I just hope her son grows up relatively okay. But it really was simple. What is Daniel Schuler up to these days and his closet-smoker sister in law? or was she doing it right in front of them? The filmmakers were able to obtain medical records that had eluded them and helped them to get answers from a private investigator they had hired. I didn't much care for the documentary. She purposely killed the kids and herself because she was an angry control freak. Schuler was driving the five children from Hunter Lake Campground in the Catskills. The 2 kept insisting that if Diane had had alcohol problems, they would have know about it. judging from the death photos, R86, no. The film follows Dianes husband and sister-in-law, who have been trying to clear Dianes name ever since her death. We are still being dodged by all the questions that we wanted answered.". R39, I just saw the documentary. I think he survived but the woman driving the car he crashed into didn't. Also, did any of her coworkers come forward to say what she was like to work with and if she showed any signs of problem drinking (calling out often, making up excuses to stay home, etc)? Some viewers may complain that Theres Something Wrong With Aunt Diane is on the side of Mr. Schuler and his wifes other defenders, because Ms. Garbus spends more time with him and his sister-in-law, Jay Schuler, than with anyone else. I mean would that have been so hard? All Audience. Schuler's son, Bryan, who was 5 at the time, was the only survivor. The articles and interview with investigators at a press conference said that Diane had the equivalent of 10 drinks in her system and that a giant empty bottle of Absolut Vodka was found on the floor of the drivers side as witnesses pulled Dianes body out of the burning vehicle. According to the documentary, they simply cannot reconcile the toxicology results with the loving mother and aunt who would never knowingly endanger her children.. The documentary opens with several harried calls to 911, describing a . Family members often are. Schuler's family, including her husband, Daniel Schuler, blamed her bizarre behavior on an undefined medical condition. Thanks, R21. He was not worth putting up with. I tend to think it was intentional, but I don't think it was premeditated. I just don't understand how people can think someone goes from driving perfectly fine, using a cell phone totally fine, being "coherent" by all account witnesses, and having experience with heavy drinking, to "she drank herself to the point that she didn't realize she was driving the wrong-way for 2 miles without swerving.". Did she plan to kill all the kids before the camping trip or did she decide it suddenly when she was was driving home? Well she got an OJ at McDonalds, presumably as a mixer for the vodka, and that is when she started drinking. Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. The July 26, 2009, crash was one of Westchester County's most horrific. Please click here to update your account with a username and password. There's something wrong with Aunt Diane that's one of the last things Schuler's 8-year-old niece, Emma Hance, worriedly told her father by cellphone as the minivan sped hither and then yon,. I know everyone is suing everyone, the Hances had a baby and there were two books written by family members of those killed. On July 26, 2009, 36-year-old Diane Schuler drove the wrong way down the Taconic State Parkway in New York. The decisions she made ended eight lives, four of them children. Diane had been overweight; when she lost the weight she married the first bum that came along, namely Danny Schuler. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Daniel Schuler and his in-laws, Warren and Jackie Hance, later sued each other over the crash. Its interesting to note that Diane called the brother and SIL multiple times but never called the husband once after they left the campgrounds. To be fair - all alcoholics/addicts are functional until the day they're not. There are signs, EVERYONE IGNORED THESE SIGNS? She also said something to her brother during that last phone call that was probably very telling about her motives. Investigators said Diane Schuler drove against traffic and struck Bastardi's car. Other excuses for her: she was having a stroke, she was having a seizure, she had diabetes, she had a tooth abscess, she had a cyst on her leg that may be induced a blood clot. She stops at the Sunoco convenience store for some Aspirin and perhaps another nip and toke. Why can't he give the Bastardis answers to their questions? Before this call, Schuler made three, increasingly frantic calls from her cell not the one, calm conversation thats been previously reported. It speaks to a family of people for whom rigid, absolute denial of an obvious fact is the go-to in terms of dealing with something extremely traumatic. The July 26, 2009, crash was one of Westchester County's most horrific. For nearly two miles, Schuler was driving the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway. I mean, ALL of that made sense! Top Critics. Some features on this site require a subscription. Do you think we mischaracterized a critic's review. Any history of mental illness? This seems highly unlikely to me. I have never before witnessed or heard of an alcoholic get so messed up that they lose control or cohesion to this extent. Your donation will support the student journalists of Thomas S. Wootton High School. It happens much more than you think, usually without injury or fatalities. The official HBO poster of Theres Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, a documentary from 2011. Why dont you try to think more of others next time before you post? Done deal. If we accept the case that she is an alcoholic (I think the alcoholism is moot at this point), then you're trying to tell me that a seasoned alcoholic who has presumably been drinking heavily for years, gets this messed up after some vodka and weed? Like most rest areas it is laid out to be as obviously one-way as possible but he still managed to get back on the highway the wrong way. The decision to leave the phone on the side of the road after the kids alerted one of the relatives to there being something wrong, and then the 2 mile straight, unswerving drive down the wrong side of the highway. Dianes daughter also was killed, as well as three men in an oncoming SUV. told her on the phone that his independent lab tests returned the same results as the original autopsy regarding Diane's blood alcohol levels. No doubt she needed to take the edge off frequently and did it by drinking and smoking pot. This story has been shared 106,144 times. One rumor was that she suspected her husband was having an affair with her sister-in-law. The collision killed Schuler, her 2-year-old daughter and her three nieces Emma Hance, 8; Alyson Hance, 7; and Katie Hance, 5. His eventual response, a dramatic high point in the film, is not what they had hoped for. Anyway, the way they were trying to absolve her of responsibility for killing eight people was sickening. There are two contradictory sets of questions in the case, depending on who is asking, and Ms. Garbus pursues them all. Maybe Lawn Guyland Danny can check in here and tell us the answers to all these questions She's still dead r55. They don't call 911 or the police because they don't want her to get arrested for a DUI. Wednesday, March 1, 2023: Today on General Hospital, Obrecht is furious with both Liz and Scott, Finn offers to stand by Liz, and Sonny and Dex bond over a meal. No mystery! The drive to ponder things, and that is when she was was the! 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