Two years ago today, Long Island mother Diane Schuler inexplicably drove south in the parkway’s northbound lanes for 1.7 miles before colliding head-on with another vehicle in Mount Pleasant. The accident left 8 people dead and has been the subject of national conversation since.
Last night, HBO aired “There’s Something Wrong With Aunt Diane,” a documentary that explored that aftermath of the tragedy. The film paid particular attention to Daniel Schuler and his efforts to vindicate his wife, who was found to have both alcohol and marijuana in her system after the accident.
Did you watch the documentary? Did it change your impressions of the case? Why or why not?
In the wake of the crash, the Editorial Board hosted a panel on drunk driving and its consequences. A year later, we hosted a second panel. Here are those sessions:
2009 panel on the Schuler case and drunk driving:
editorialspotlight on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free
2010 panel on the Schuler case and drunk driving:
editorialspotlight on livestream.com. Broadcast Live Free
11 Comments
Why did they show the pictures of Diane at the crash? I don’t understand.
I happened to watch this documentary a few days ago on TV. It was upsetting and heartbreaking, so I felt very compelled to write this letter, for what it’s worth.
After hearing all the witness comments and other details of this tragedy, it is possible that this event came about because of several contributing factors, which could be called a PERFECT STORM OF STRESSORS, namely:
Type A and Emotional Stress
Lack of Sleep
Obesity
Alcohol and marijuana
Too Much Food
Inflammation (Toothache)
Medications
Liver Overload
Type A/Emotional Stress:
Comments by Diane’s friends and in-laws hinted that she was a driven achiever and tried to do everything and be everything—a good employee, wife, mother, friend and aunt. There weren’t enough hours in the day for all she tried to do, so a lot of sleep was lost.
People are driven for different reasons—what is expected of them by others, and what they expect of themselves and some people push themselves too hard. This can lead to physical exhaustion .
Lack of Sleep:
It is likely that she was already sleep deprived because of her driven life style.
When people feel overly tired, they should stop pushing themselves to accomplish so much. They need to just stop and rest, take a long nap and develop the habit of getting at least 7 hours of sleep each night.
Many health advice articles have proclaimed sufficient sleep is a top factor in maintaining the immune system. In addition, it during sleep that our bodies heal themselves.
Obesity:
Over time the lack of sleep can lead to a depressed immune system and weight gain due to the body’s production of the hormone cortisol. Pictures of Diane showed she was obese.
Obesity overloads all bodily systems and creates fatty deposits around the liver and pancreas leading to diabetes and other ailments.
Alcohol and Marijuana:
Although no one who knew her could believe that Diane had been drinking, there is irrefutable evidence: (1) There was a bottle of alcohol in her car that her husband finally admitted to having (a bottle each time they were camping). (2) Her blood alcohol tested positive at 1.6 (as I recall), which is double the .08 allowed in most states. Then there is the proof of pot usage as well.
It is a common practice among many adults to have alcohol when they are camping or on vacation. Even normally responsible people feel that it’s okay to indulge in the evening because they expect to be sober by the next morning.
It is a proven fact that men can metabolize alcohol and drugs faster than women because of their larger body mass and also because they have more muscle mass.
If she and her husband did have alcohol the night before, they probably waited until the kids had gone to sleep, which could mean that they were up late in order for her to have imbibed 10 drinks of alcohol as reported.
Then getting up early the next day was a bad idea. She probably had a big hangover from her binging; and had she been allowed to sleep in until she awoke on her own, there might have been a favorable outcome to this story.
While coffee won’t sober someone up, it does provide stimulation to improve functionality for the intoxicated person.
Because she was obese, Diane probably knew she could hold more liquor before getting officially intoxicated
than if she were thin. This is probably why witnesses said she didn’t appear intoxicated despite her high blood alcohol count.
The problem is that her liver probably wasn’t able to metabolize the amount of drugs and alcohol in the short time allowed.
Too Much Food:
She may likely have ordered a large meal at McDonald’s, so her liver would now have the added burden of food digestion.
It used to be medically advisable to not eat a heavy meal (just soup broth) when the body is injured or is fighting an infection. Also an emotional upset can result in indigestion.
Inflammation (Toothache):
She had been complaining of toothaches for a while.
It could be that the alcohol the previous night provided temporary relief from a recurring toothache, if in fact she was suffering such at the time.
Toxins from a tooth inflection are said to cause inflammation which could lead to a stroke.
When the phone call from her niece in the car indicated that “Aunt Diane can’t see“, it’s very possible that a distressed blood vessel caused the vision problem.
Medications:
Because she was looking to buy a pain reliever indicates she had a headache from a hangover or possibly from her tooth problem or both.
If she did obtain and take Tylenol, this was serious because of the medical warning to never ingest alcohol and Tylenol in the same 24-hour period because it could cause liver failure.
There was no mention of her taking any prescription medications which would have further compromised her condition.
Did an autopsy uncover any signs of organ distress or failure?
Liver Overload:
The liver handles many processes for the body simultaneously, such as providing bile and other digestive juices for food assimilation, removing toxins from the blood stream, processing alcohol and drugs and more.
An overworked liver can lead to a variety of serious ailments such as diabetes, yellow jaundice, hepatitis or cirrhosis.
Some symptoms include an upset stomach, nausea, vomiting, headache and dizziness, which can be diagnosed as several other maladies.
According to witnesses she passed on the freeway, she was in a big hurry to get off the road and actually pulled to the side and threw up.
Nausea and headache are both signs of a heart attack or stroke. Because her niece’s phone call said her aunt couldn’t see would point toward a stroke or brain hemorrhage theory.
Conclusion
Most likely, poor Diane suffered from a stroke brought on this perfect storm of stressors. Any one stressor alone would have probably been okay; but her liver could not process everything at once: Alcohol/marijuana, tooth infection inflammation, large meal and Tylenol. Add to that exhaustion from lack of sleep and stress related to discomfort from nausea and headache.
My prayers go out to her family and friends and the other families who were impacted by this tragedy.
If any good is to come is this is for people to be aware of this risky situation.
People get so involved with the everyday activities that are part of life. They may not realize how the blend of what they think, eat, drink and do determines whether they will live or die soon. There are many people living with these stressor combinations everyday, who are ticking time bombs.
Thank you for producing this film as a reminder to others that the actions of one single person in one instant can affect other people’s lives forever.
Regards,
L Hodges
Is there anyone else who observes tragic, extreme denial on the part of Danny and Jay about the use of alcohol and drugs by Diane the day of the crash?
it was a very informative explanation on ONLY GOD CAN JUDGE. EVERY SITUATION IS NOT THE SAME. Very sad freak unexplainable accident. MY HEART,PRAYERS & THOUGHTS GO OUT TO THE FAMILY. r.i.p diane.
I’ve read so many horrible things about Diane and I’ve watched the documentary and I feel strongly that she was intoxicated and high. I feel like this was something that should have never happened and only God himself knows why it did. That being said….even though I feel the way I do….NO ONE…including myself should cast any judgement…that is for God to do. This could happen to any one of us….on either side. So just remember when throwing stones that the same thing could happen to you…on either side…and NO ONE would ever want to be on either side of a tragedy like this. No one is perfect and no matter how good any one of us is…we all make poor judgements during our lives….most of us are just lucky that those judgements don’t affect us in this way. I pray that all of the family members and loved ones of all of these victims will be able to find inner peace although that will more than likely never happen for most involved.
I felt like the picture of Diane at the end was unnecessary.
I watched this twice because I found the original event so compelling, and the documentary pretty fascinating, too.
As commenter Susan wonders, WhY did they have to show the photo of Diane’s corpse? That really rubbed me the wrong way. It seemed very sensational and disrespectful. Unless her family allowed it for some reason… Very distasteful.
As for the mystery of what happened: I’m still puzzled.
I don’t believe it was an accident.
I believe Diane had a substance abuse problem (despite what the family says).
The biggest piece of the mystery is why she behaved that way with children in the car. As any parent knows, your children are your Achilles heel. The best way to hurt someone is through their children. I really wonder if she was trying to get back at her husband and her nieces were collateral damage. I think she totally snapped – maybe a psychotic break?
@ Susan, I had the same thought. Not an image I needed to see.
I happened to catch most of the documentary last night. I was not in NY at the time of the tragedy, though I have lived in the area it occurred. I recall hearing of it, but not in detail. I first learned any of the detail in a magazine article by the mother of the three girls and Diane’s best friend.
I can see why it would be so easy for people looking for a reason for such a horrific tragedy to demonize her. However, after seeing the documentary last night, I am convinced that the toxicology was completely out of character for this woman, and her family is reasonably searching for a explanation. Unfortunately, I’m not sure that can ever come.
A few other thoughts I had (other than the emotional trauma) were 1) so many missed opportunities to help this woman and the children on the day and 2) I wonder what compelled her to continue after she stopped on the east side of the Tappanzee. I am stumped as to the lessons to be learned from this heart-wrenching episode. I come away recognizing that every goodbye can be a last one and the courage it takes to be a parent and to trust those we love and the powers that be.
God Bless all affected by this tragedy.
Something similar to this happened to me several years ago. One day, I was driving in the left lane of Highway 31 [Montgomery Highway], a 4 lane, here, in Birmingham, AL. Going past stores, speed limit 35, I think; not fast, with my daughter in her car seat in the back of our Toyota Avalon. Suddenly, out of nowhere, there was a car going the wrong way in my lane, coming right at me at 40 miles an hour. By the grace of God, no one was in the usually crowded right lane. I slammed into the right lane without a millisecond to spare. But what has stayed with me, and why I put this out there, is that this young woman had been staring straight ahead, as if I were invisible, and as if she was just driving, well, ok. In my rear view mirror, I saw that she just continued on that way. And, it was like they said in the documentary, she was driving “straight as a pin”, not swerving as you would expect an intoxicated person to do. It was a very frightening, but most of all, bizarre incident. I called 911. I think most people would. So, maybe there are more cases like this. Maybe, if there are others, we could learn more about what happened in this terrible tragedy. And maybe how to prevent it.
I watched this documentary last night for the first time. Despite the intentions of the family to clear Diane’s name, I think the film did the opposite – and rightly so. This woman, whether or not in her “right mind” – consumed pot and alcohol and drove a car with 5 children inside. Whether she was in agonizing pain or not, she should never have gotten into that car in the first place. I’m glad they showed her dead body in the film. I was so angry at that point. I stared at her body and felt not one ounce of sympathy for her. I am a mother of 3 children and no matter what my breaking point is, I would never ever drive my children – or my brother’s children! if I was not feeling 100%. It is pure irresponsibility. And now her husband is suing NY State and his brother-in-law whose children his disgusting wife killed. What is wrong with this man? He is in denial and should be put in jail for bringing frivolous lawsuits. His poor son.
Had her blood been checked for anti-freeze?
Anti-freeze poisoning could give her all of the same symptoms (including the blindness). Was she tested for that?
THC also comes in a pill format. This could explain the sudden blindness as well.
How many coffee’s did her husband say he made her before she left, two I think.
Watch the movie again and LISTEN to her so called best friend and her husband.
Her niece called her father and said “There’s something wrong with aunt Diane”. If Diane had been drinking that girl would have known and told her father right then and there. I am sure if Diane’s niece thought she was drunk she would not have gotten back in van.
The drive was apparently only 35 minutes long. There is no way she got that drunk in that amount of time if she had not been drinking.
I think the story about her tooth being sore and boozing to relieve the pain is ridiculous.
I think he spiked her coffee!
Not that he wanted to hurt the whole family but he probably thought she would be poisoned quickly and get sick. If he didn’t know about the blindness that would come with it…