Was she really the reckless drunk, or the perfect suburban mother?This documentary explores the depth behind the case of a woman whose vehicle collision killed numerous people, including herself. A few other pointsthis was an extremely controlling woman in a potentially unhappy relationship with a man who had no interest/desire to raise several kids. The autopsy showed no.traces of Ambien in her system. On the other hand, there are the questions that Ms. Schulers husband, Daniel, has steadfastly raised: Were the tests mistaken? [R21] sounds like he/she was right in the car! Does anyone else see it that way? She overdid it and.the rest is history. And she tried to hide all this anger by smoking pot and drinking in secret. After her mom left, I think Diane was molested by one of her brothers or fathers. I would like to remain anonymous. The missing Yuba boys always make me think this too. She was a selfish pig either way. In 2011, Liz Garbus directed the film There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane for HBO, a film that features interviews with Schuler's husband Daniel and her sister-in-law, Jay, who insist that she was not a drinker and couldn't or wouldn't have deliberately put the children in danger. Why can't he give the Bastardis answers to their questions? I haven't heard anything about this case in a long time. There are two contradictory sets of questions in the case, depending on who is asking, and Ms. Garbus pursues them all. (Name will only be used to verify billing.). Whatever, It's a really good episode. Well she got an OJ at McDonalds, presumably as a mixer for the vodka, and that is when she started drinking. The 2 kept insisting that if Diane had had alcohol problems, they would have know about it. Her husband: deny deny deny. She bought orange juice to use as a mixer! Did she plan to kill all the kids before the camping trip or did she decide it suddenly when she was was driving home? site without all this bureaucratic nonsense, As relatives, friends, co-workers and a forensic psychologist build a picture of Diane as a high-achieving, perfectionist mother and wife, Ms. Garbus intersperses the interviews with a reconstruction of the events of July 26, 2009. I don't know how much you'd have to take to sleep drive or sleep eat. (1,682) 6.7 1 h 40 min 2011 18+. I think she was drinking/smoking for liquid courage and was resolved to murder-suicide that day. I totally agree. In the L&O episode the Diane character was threatening to whistle blow on the uselessness of an expensive cancer drug her company was promoting, so a co-worker silenced her by covertly getting her drunk and high. I think we all know of someone in our lives or social circles who are or have been alcoholics who have a propensity to drive drunk. If you believe this was accidental, there are two scenarios: 1) shes a raging alcoholic, in which case .19 doesnt get her to this state, or 2) she isnt an alcoholic, but decided on this day to get hammered and high with 7 kids in the car? I can't imagine anything more awful than being a kid in that van. It would make more sense if she had wanted to end it all and take the children with her to have them unsecured at that point. The film, however, raised more questions than it answered. She may or may not have been a major alcoholic, but her liver showed no signs of chronic alcoholism (which is odd for a woman since women don't metabolize booze as well as men). I just assumed anecdotally that it was pretty rare. "I do hope, someday," Bastardi said, "maybe if they have a change of heart they'll reach out and we'll find out what really went on. Two things that I haven't seen answered anywhere in the media. (although obvs. click ACCEPT. Hello and thank you for being a DL contributor. 2011. Please click here to update your account with a username and password. Watchlist. She was pulling over to puke, ffs. A wife and mother, who was also a cable TV executive, emerges in the film as a woman who strove to be perfect, often referred to as supermom by friends and family. It messed her up. Essentially, some people said they could buy that the weed + booze = her being so out of her mind disoriented the crash was an "accident" (in quotes there cuz obviously she could have abstained from both and voila, no accident at all). God will deal with the rest. The HBO documentary There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane tracked Daniel's journey to clear his wife's name. She stops at the Sunoco convenience store for some Aspirin and perhaps another nip and toke. The "last hurrah " at McDonalds theory is just chilling if that was her intention.Jesus. Schuler, a manager in Cablevisions accounting department, would suck down screwdrivers at a Long Island saloon, where she was a regular the past few years and usually came by herself, her pal said, adding: I wouldnt say she was an alcoholic, but she liked her drinks. I think she did it only after being set off by some event during the camping trip and because drinking and being high gave her the "courage" and decreased her judgement. After all, Princess Diana's mother abandoned her at 6 years old, and look what a nut she turned out to be. I do.). I was surprised she wouldnt have a car seat at least. This contrasts with the aftermath of her actions. Have the Hances had to give any testimony through the various lawsuits about what happened on that day? "July 25, 2011: HBO releases "There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane," with the cooperation of Daniel Schuler and his sister-in-law Jay. The hot air makes her feel worse. R21 does make sense. There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (HBO Docs) HBODocs 149K subscribers Subscribe 291 Share 420K views 11 years ago Subscribe to HBO Docs: http://itsh.bo/10r45k3 "There's. She leaves her phone on the barrier on the side of the road. Or someone who left the dreadfully tacky long island years ago but still knows the goings-on at home? I just dont get how she goes from camping every weekend and being a PTA mom who doesnt let the kids out of her sighta great mom (per a neighbor) to purposely terrifying and murdering all the kids, herself, and a handful of drivers. I'm not going to speculate on any specific molestation etc. Yet she had no choice but to ride on, helplessly, to her death. She still drove while fucked up and killed lots of people. our privacy/terms or if you just want to see the damn But while the lawsuits are done, relatives of some of those killed said the unanswered questions are not. Your contribution will allow us to purchase equipment and cover our annual website hosting costs. The drive takes about 40 min, but she's gone for over an hour when her brother called. We are changing the login scheme for contributors for simpler login and to better support using multiple devices. End of story. I just find it hard to believe this woman was an alcoholic and no one thought that she should not drive the kids around. They made a big deal out of her asking for pain meds at the convenience store: "something must have been bothering her." Watch Official Trailer, 'There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane". And of course, there was the fact that Diane's mother had abandoned Diane and her brothers when Diane was only nine, leaving Diane to become the "woman of the house" to her siblings. ", I agree that she was drunk and high, btw. I tend to think it was intentional, but I don't think it was premeditated. Authorities want to figure out if Schuler, who denied that his wife even liked the taste of alcohol, is a danger to his son. The drive takes about 40 min, but she's gone for over an hour when her brother called. She was a murderer that took the lives of 5 innocent children and 3 innocent men and her husband, bother and sister-in-laws - Jackie and Jay all covered for her. [quote] I just find it hard to believe this woman was an alcoholic and no one thought that she should not drive the kids around. If there was Ambien involved (maybe they're just keeping it out of the press) the families may have gotten a huge settlement from the company and a gag order. C'mon. 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Michelle Carter, The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley, After Truth: Disinformation and the Cost of Fake News, Obama: In Pursuit of a More Perfect Union, A Choice of Weapons: Inspired by Gordon Parks, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=There%27s_Something_Wrong_with_Aunt_Diane&oldid=1141220529, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 23 February 2023, at 23:57. [quote] One rumor was that she suspected her husband was having an affair with her sister-in-law. She has time on the drive to ponder things, and seems to be driving aimlessly. That's always seemed obvious to me r79, she was clearly an undercover alchie. She gets out of the car a few times to puke. To be fair - all alcoholics/addicts are functional until the day they're not. During the Taconic State Parkway crash, some eyewitnesses reported Schuler looked calm and in control. Thats insane. I think it started to sink in to Jay Schuler toward the end, when the investigator hired by Dominic Barbara (sic?) Were the smaller children strapped into car seats? 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. Was she really the reckless drunk, or the perfect suburban mother? Chronic alcoholics can have crazy high levels compared to social drinkers. 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. I don't think there's any disputing the outcome here but regardless it's a crazy story and a reasonably well done documentary/movie. Why dont you try to think more of others next time before you post? Those accents. Online records show the four cases, all in state Supreme Court in Westchester County, were marked with a disposition date of Sept. 11, 2013. "There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane" premieres on HBO at Monday 9 p.m. WATCH VIDEO: The trailer for "There's something wrong with Aunt Diane"," which is available on. We have had 2 wrong way drivers on the expressway here kill other people in the last week. I think the most aggravating thing (not the most devastating thing, as that would be the death of innocent children) about this case is that we will simply never know what in the hell really happened to cause her to behave the way she did. Maybe it was Ambien?". [1] It premiered on HBO on July 25, 2011.[2]. Replies analysing and speculating over the mystery and possible explanations are encouraged. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts. Shes gone, he said, choking up. Clearly, Diane had a lot of responsibility on her shoulders in that family. Some one will want a nice payday and will talk. She had a lot of pent up rage. There was one interesting scene where, when asked if the family was going to pay to exhume the body and do more testing, sister in law Jay said something to the effect of, "well we can't do that because we don't have Diane's salary coming in anymore." Have there been any recent updates with the Schuler family? 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. Not 100% anyway. With her were five young children: her son, her daughter, and three nieces. Aunt Diane on her wedding day; I was surprised that she doesnt look like an evil lush (I havent seen the documentary yet). 1 hr 39 mins. Poisoned Apple: What happened to Aunt Diane? Thats pretty damning. with updates on movies, TV shows, Rotten Tomatoes podcast and more. The July 26, 2009, crash was one of Westchester County's most horrific. What is Daniel Schuler up to these days and his closet-smoker sister in law? People I know have lived their whole lives like this, lives of silent, absolute denial that anything is wrong (as the sole strategy to deal with some being very wrong). 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.". There was also a quid pro quo at work. As mentioned by the source, Diane was driving a red 2003 Ford Windstar that belonged to her brother. As one of the worst motor-vehicle accidents in New York State history, the tragedy quickly became national news. What I do not understand is how was she smoking pot without the kids noticing? Marvel Movies Ranked Worst to Best by Tomatometer, Jurassic Park Movies Ranked By Tomatometer, The Mandalorian Creators Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni on Grogus Force Training and the Darksabers Significance. To make matters worse, her son that survived is now taken care of by his dad/ Diane's husband, who is kinda abusive to the son. 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. I think he survived but the woman driving the car he crashed into didn't. This seems highly unlikely to me. There was an interesting discussion on this sub, perhaps last year, where some people who were familiar with heavy marijuana use + high amounts of alcohol being quickly consumed = being super extremely fucked up. Why does it seem the brother is covering up for Diane? The film profiles Diane Schuler, who caused the fatal car accident, through interviews with her family members and friends, and attempts to piece together Schuler's actions on the day of the accident, in order to determine why the accident took place. Four lawsuits have been settled from a 2009 crash that killed eight after a drunk and high West Babylon woman drove the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway, according to court documents and attorneys handling two of the cases. Although Schulers husband, Daniel, contested the results, initial autopsy reports indicated Schuler was heavily intoxicated at the time of the crash. Diane Schuler was a 36-year-old woman from New York. For example, when her husband's mother freely admits that Diane's husband acted more like her "oldest child" than a husband; when Jay lets it slip that the Diane's husband didn't really want to have kids and that he resents having to be a single parent now; when Diane's friends talk about her perfectionism; and when her own mother in law admits she doesn't understand how Diane found the time to work full time and take care of the children and household chores (because your son--Diane's husband--was useless, duh). Any history of mental illness? She was the breadwinner in the family and had to take full responsibility for the kids. I work in an ER and the regular daily drinkers are walking and talking to me in the 200 and 300s.. even the 400s. This mysterious and shattering tragedy draws the public in, feeling a need to find out what really happened to Aunt Diane. Worth the watch. So 'apparently' Danny (the husband of Diane) was having an affair with Jackie Hance (the sister in-law who lost 3 daughters). There's Something Wrong With Aunt Diane Reviews. She decided she'd have a few belts and a few smokes; no doubt she'd done something like this before and thought she could handle it., that is, driving while intoxicated. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. By Joe Reid Jul 30, 2018. [quote]The McDonalds employees and the camp ground owner also swear that Diane wasnt drunk when they saw and interacted with them that morning. .14 - .19 The "good feelings" of euphoria begin to give way to some negative feelings such as anxiety and restlessness. Directed by Liz Garbus; produced by Ms. Garbus and Julie Gaither; edited by M. Watanabe Milmore; director of photography, Michael Tucker; music by Jonathan Zalban. Thanks, R21. Like she decided she and those kids were going to die that day AND THEN started boozing heavily and smoking. R65 that's no way to describe Datalounge Danny! He's currently serving a prison sentence if I remember right. By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and [2] Premise [ edit] 'SOMETHING WRONG WITH AUNT DIANE' By Andrea Peyser August 7, 2009 6:30am IN THE minutes before Diane Schuler drunkenly smashed her vehicle while traveling in the wrong direction on the. Did he just refuse to say what was said, or was he cagey or obviously lying or what? If she WASNT such a heavy drinker that 190 made her so impaired Why did she take such an outrageous risk by drinking and driving with kids in the car? For nearly two miles, Schuler was driving the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway. Schuler, one of her children and three of her young nieces in the minivan were killed, as were three people in the northbound car she hit. I recently watched this documentary and found several threads here about Diane Schuler but I can't seem to find any updates as of 2013? Therefore, it doesn't surprise me that Diane never forgave her mother for making her a surrogate mother. On July 26, 2011, the day after the premiere of HBO's documentary on the subject, There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, and on the second anniversary of the crash, Daniel Schuler announced that he is suing the State of New York for not keeping the road safe and his brother-in-law Warren Hance for being the owner of the minivan. This was curious, because the Schulers said they left upstate early, around 9:30 a.m. on July 26. No, they're all still dead, as far as we know. Not sarcastic: what's your IQ? Yes, why hasn't her brother ever revealed the details of the phone call to Diane? But that's where the evidence leads me, sadly. Ah, thanks, R73. no she did not. Regardless, I think the evidence still suggests intent - her driving behavior while on the highway seemed to imply control of the vehicle. Ms. Garbus offered to move forward the fitful investigation that Mr. Schuler and Jay Schuler have sponsored in their effort to vindicate Diane, or at least to explain her behavior. 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. She was high on marijuana and had the equivalent of 10 shots of booze in her stomach.. About a week after her deadly crash, Shulerss toxicology report revealed she had a blood-alcohol content of .19%. It was in her blood and there was still 6 (was it ounces or quarts?) The woman took her girls away. Bastardis daughters, Roseanne Guzzo and Margaret Nicotina, say they have forgiven Diane but find it harder to forgive Daniel and Jay, who seem to them to be in denial about Dianes accountability. According to the documentary, they simply cannot reconcile the toxicology results with the loving mother and aunt who would never knowingly endanger her children.. Shortly after noon, Schuler had a phone conversation with her sister-in-law, Jackie Hance. Do I need to lecture you on how fucking stupid you are being? IN THE minutes before Diane Schuler drunkenly smashed her vehicle while traveling in the wrong direction on the Taconic Parkway murdering seven innocents and herself her little niece cried, terrified, into a cellphone to her dad: Theres something wrong with Aunt Diane!. I read in one article that the kids were playing at the McDonalds playpen thing for an hour. She made twice his salary. The lawsuits against the estate of Diane Schuler, 36, claimed she was negligent when she drove a minivan south in the northbound lanes of the parkway on July 26, 2009. 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