NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) -- Lauren Pazienza, the Long Island native accused of fatally shoving an 87-year-old voice teacher in Manhattan, is set to undergo a psychological assessment to determine her mental state during the alleged attack last spring.
Pazienza, 27, was back in New York State Supreme Court on Thursday as she faces a charge of first-degree manslaughter in the March 10 death of Barbara Gustern on a Chelsea street.
During the hearing, prosecutors said they planned to have a psychological assessment completed by January, Newsday reported Friday.
Pazienza’s defense attorneys are preparing a psychological assessment of their own, reportedly to show she’d been drinking excessively on the night Gustern was called a “b****” and shoved to the sidewalk unprovoked at W. 28th Street and Eighth Avenue.
Pazienza reportedly didn’t speak during Thursday’s hearing, which came two months after the defense filed a motion indicating they intended to pursue a psychological defense in the case.
According to Newsday, if both the defense and prosecution can agree Pazienza was intoxicated and had other psychological issues, they may be able to work out a plea deal to avoid a trial in the case. Sources told the outlet that she has already rejected a plea deal to cap her sentence at 15 years in prison.
In October, when the trial had been scheduled to start, defense attorney Arthur Aidala submitted a mental health report to the Manhattan District Attorney's Office claiming his client has mental health issues.
Aidala said Pazienza has received counseling while being held at Rikers Island but did not publicly specify if she has a specific diagnosis.
Gustern was a well-known voice coach whose students included Debbie Harry, of Blondie, and the Broadway cast of “Oklahoma.” She died at a city hospital five days after she was shoved, authorities said, her cause of death being blunt force trauma to the head.
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