8 Die in Crash on Taconic State Parkway #2

[hot cawfeee]

Just thinking out loud--you Sleuthers have given me much to think on---The Hance's did not have the luxury of grieving privately--I am sure people came out of the woodwork to attend the wakes and funeral----and how sad if either jackie or Warren thought they had to spin this or behave in a certain way.

IMO--Diane was a heavy drinker and could have hid it from Danny. He worked nights and seems (IMO) to be a disconnected guy--not into what the kids were doing, what Diane made for dinner etc--and its possible he could not have known how she drank daily. He may have been afraid of her--afraid to confront her drinking. What he knew before the accident is different to a degree from what he knew that day--and the night before--how much did she have to drink and was she still drunk, impaired when he left.
I think one issue that Jackie may have been subjected to is :Mom v. Mom------Diane the worker and Jackie-stay at home mom.
How many articles and talk show topics were about Moms on the edge, Moms who drink, Moms on pedestals getting knocked off, Playdates with wine etc.???? Working Moms get cut more slack b/c they work-according to some.
One thing that stay with me is how rage-filled Diane's act was---

 

[hot cawfeee]

Was reading back on first thread----Danny had another fishing trip and was not due to meet Diane and the kids at home? Is that correct? If this is true-wow--it explains alot to me!!!

And re:the documentary----I dont remember seeing Danny's siblings participating alot--any one else think they may in recovery or AA/NA??? This is MOO of course--just something I wondered about---How cool would it be is Liz Garbus popped in here ???

 

[Mrs G Norris]

You know, I don't think being drunk / stoned really accounts for her driving in the wrong direction up the parkway for 1.7 miles. That's a long time, and even as out of it as she was by then anyone would realise and pull over. Not only that but she tried to get painkillers, and was driving erratically. I think she wanted to cause a terrible accident that day and kill herself and all the kids, I think she used the drugs / alcohol to give her the courage and to minimise the pain she herself would suffer. I truly think this is a murder / suicide.

 

[nrdsb4]

You know, I don't think being drunk / stoned really accounts for her driving in the wrong direction up the parkway for 1.7 miles. That's a long time, and even as out of it as she was by then anyone would realise and pull over.

People do this kind of thing all the time simply because they are wasted. I DO actually think the suicide theory is plausible, but I don't think the fact that she didn't pull over proves that point. People who are that drunk can truly be that oblivious.

A lot of us have wondered if she drank so much after speaking to her brother in order to work up the courage to end it all. I don't know that we'll ever be able to know one way or the other what the true reason was behind the tragedy.

 

[hot cawfeee]

Hey Mrs G!!!! I have read many that folks believe Diane committed suicide.
I would love to know the content of the phone calls---and Diane's "mystery" calls--IIRC--she had a placed a phone call to an unidentified person the night prior to the accident
and had recieved a call at 12:08 pm Sunday of the accident (same caller? not stated).
Also as I have read back thread, Danny's EZpass shows he crossed Harriman toll plaza early Friday morning despite stating he had left Thursday "to set up camp" prior to Diane's Friday arrival with the children.
It is possible Diane committed suicide---I wonder if Danny's "absence" coughcough (MOO) was the tipping point. She had a scrip for Ambien--what was the reason she gave the doctor I wonder?????

 

[nrdsb4]

Hey Mrs G!!!! I have read many that folks believe Diane committed suicide.
I would love to know the content of the phone calls---and Diane's "mystery" calls--IIRC--she had a placed a phone call to an unidentified person the night prior to the accident
and had recieved a call at 12:08 pm Sunday of the accident (same caller? not stated).
Also as I have read back thread, Danny's EZpass shows he crossed Harriman toll plaza early Friday morning despite stating he had left Thursday "to set up camp" prior to Diane's Friday arrival with the children.
It is possible Diane committed suicide---I wonder if Danny's "absence" coughcough (MOO) was the tipping point. She had a scrip for Ambien--what was the reason she gave the doctor I wonder?????

According to Jackie Hance, she called Diane at 12:08 to see where they were so she could let Emma's play practice carpool know if she would be participating that day. She said that the call was nothing special and that she didn't notice anything odd about Diane at that time. So that call is no mystery.

 

[hot cawfeee]

nrdsb4----yes--wrong way driving b/c the driver is drunk is plausible.

I am in process of re-reading this-----thats alot of pot and alcohol to consume in a relatively short time-------I wonder just what note she and Danny left each other on???
I have read earlier posts that he was on his way to another fishing trip (first thread--about post 25-40 ish--thereabouts IIRC)---he would be out of cell range so Diane would have called Warren if she needed help.

Has Diane's mother ever spoken publically????? And is her Dad still alive????

 

[nrdsb4]

nrdsb4----yes--wrong way driving b/c the driver is drunk is plausible.

I am in process of re-reading this-----thats alot of pot and alcohol to consume in a relatively short time-------I wonder just what note she and Danny left each other on???
I have read earlier posts that he was on his way to another fishing trip (first thread--about post 25-40 ish--thereabouts IIRC)---he would be out of cell range so Diane would have called Warren if she needed help.

Has Diane's mother ever spoken publically????? And is her Dad still alive????

hot cawfee, Danny actually went home rather than fishing. I don't think there ever was a plan for him to do that. In fact he beat Diane home and was asleep when the Hances called him once they became very alarmed about Diane's mental status.

In the first thread, it's stated over and over that Diane called Warren for "help." That never happened. The call which came at 12:58 came from Emma to her house-the now infamous call which Jackie took where Emma said "Mommy, there's something wrong with Aunt Diane." Jackie then asked to speak with Diane and was very disturbed with Diane's slurring of her words and the fact that she didn't make any sense. The call which was placed to Diane at 1:02 came from Warren after Diane and Jackie's call was dropped (or Diane hung up). He had walked into the house right as the call dropped and Jackie told him that Diane had sounded "drunk." Warren replied "Impossible!" Jackie then surmised that perhaps Diane was having a stroke or a seizure of some kind. So Warren dials Diane's cell phone, and that's when Diane stated that she wasn't feeling well. The fact that the call lasted 8 or 9 minutes was a big issue in the first thread, but we now know that Warren didn't speak to Diane the entire time-he was speaking to Emma, trying to get her to tell him what signs she could see from their location, so that Warren could figure out where they were parked.

Also, Diane's father was alive at the time of the accident (he and Warren had gone together to try to find the van and were together at the hospital when they got the news) and at the time Jackie's book was published. I believe her mother was quoted in an article written shortly after the tragedy.

 

[hot cawfeee]

thank you-----saved me from reading!!--lol

 

[Nova]

According to Jackie Hance, she called Diane at 12:08 to see where they were so she could let Emma's play practice carpool know if she would be participating that day. She said that the call was nothing special and that she didn't notice anything odd about Diane at that time. So that call is no mystery.

No mystery, true, but interesting that she sounded "fine" at 12:08, but was slurring her words 50 minutes later. Either she had already chugged a great deal of vodka or she drank a lot in the 50 minutes between calls (or, I suppose, she really did have a stroke). That doesn't sound like "sipping" to me.

 

[nrdsb4]

No mystery, true, but interesting that she sounded "fine" at 12:08, but was slurring her words 50 minutes later. Either she had already chugged a great deal of vodka or she drank a lot in the 50 minutes between calls (or, I suppose, she really did have a stroke). That doesn't sound like "sipping" to me.

I was referring to the fact that WHO called at 12:08 was no mystery, as we know now that it was Jackie Hance.

I think she was probably pretty good at maintaining after she'd already gotten a good buzz. At some point, though, she couldn't keep up the facade. Or maybe she smoked the joint after that convo before chugging some more vodka. Pot plus alcohol has a synergistic effect. Who knows?

She didn't have a stroke. She just got incredibly wasted.

 

[Nova]

Hey Mrs G!!!! I have read many that folks believe Diane committed suicide.
I would love to know the content of the phone calls---and Diane's "mystery" calls--IIRC--she had a placed a phone call to an unidentified person the night prior to the accident
and had recieved a call at 12:08 pm Sunday of the accident (same caller? not stated).
Also as I have read back thread, Danny's EZpass shows he crossed Harriman toll plaza early Friday morning despite stating he had left Thursday "to set up camp" prior to Diane's Friday arrival with the children.
It is possible Diane committed suicide---I wonder if Danny's "absence" coughcough (MOO) was the tipping point. She had a scrip for Ambien--what was the reason she gave the doctor I wonder?????

I might put more credence in the suicide theory if she had only taken her own children with them. I realize parents sometimes have "separation issues" with their own kids and decide the children will be better off dead than without the suicidal parent.

But I really have trouble believing DS planned to commit suicide and also kill her nieces (who still had two, perfectly good parents).

We've all seen the video of DS's "wrong-way" route. If she had the sort of tunnel-vision common to DUI, it wouldn't have been hard for her to miss the "wrong way" sign. Once she was on the freeway going the wrong way, she clung to the right-hand lane as if she was confused and though she was on a two-way highway.

 

[Nova]

...She didn't have a stroke. She just got incredibly wasted.

I wasn't arguing for the stroke theory (hence the parentheses), just acknowledging that the theory is out there, and it is one thing that would explain such a radical transformation within 50 minutes.

I realize the autopsy found no evidence of stroke, but I don't have the medical knowledge to know exactly what that means.

 

[nrdsb4]

I wasn't arguing for the stroke theory (hence the parentheses), just acknowledging that the theory is out there, and it is one thing that would explain such a radical transformation within 50 minutes.

I realize the autopsy found no evidence of stroke, but I don't have the medical knowledge to know exactly what that means.

Well, when they do an autopsy, they look specifically for signs of stroke. A TIA does leave no evidence but a stroke does. By definition, a stroke causes a portion of the brain tissue to die. Also, there will be a blood clot or other obstruction present or, in the event of a hemorrhagic stroke, lots of blood in the brain.

Most strokes result in not only slurred speech, but physical symptoms which would make it very difficult to physically drive a car, right way, wrong way, any way. I'm really not sure why the stroke theory took such a strong hold with people when we have all the explanation we need (drug screen) to explain her actions. We can get into motivation with suicide theories and other emotional reasons, but there is no reason to look for a physical ailment on which to blame the situation when it can be entirely explained by the drugs and alcohol in her system.

 

[Nova]

Thanks for the explanation. I wasn't arguing FOR the stroke theory, just acknowledging that I didn't have the knowledge to rebut it. Your explanation makes perfect sense to me.

 

[hot cawfeee]

Am wondering the content of Diane's conversation with Warren--was it "Yes" "No" or detailed questions and answers---and what did Warren hear in the background??? Windows open b/c Diane was smoking pot??? I am sure Warren and Jackie would have smelled it--on her clothes at least

 

[corq]

You know, I don't think being drunk / stoned really accounts for her driving in the wrong direction up the parkway for 1.7 miles. That's a long time, and even as out of it as she was by then anyone would realise and pull over. Not only that but she tried to get painkillers, and was driving erratically. I think she wanted to cause a terrible accident that day and kill herself and all the kids, I think she used the drugs / alcohol to give her the courage and to minimise the pain she herself would suffer. I truly think this is a murder / suicide.

I'm reading over the entire thread, and lots of news reports; I'm inclined to agree with you.

In my mind there is something that provoked her that day (to some extent) or something that started something "psychological" stewing after she parted ways for the afternoon with the husband.

Did he say something that 'goaded' her before she took the kids to eat? If she was a closet drinker and regularly kept her stash in the vehicle, this (to me) would explain the accelerated drinking behavior no one else observed.

As for the inexplicable taking of all those kids' lives: I think a person in self-harm mode is psychologically walled-off from moral consideration of the consequences. (I do not mean they are absolved of responsibility, just that they are numb to the moral aspect of their actions at this particular moment)

If her drinking was methodically hidden at this point, she was already well-practiced and engaging in self-insulating behavior with the drinking itself. She may have detached herself even moreso if this drinking volume was much greater than her norm this day, "braving up" for what she planned to do.

It's horrible to think that those kids were collateral damage to something brewing in her own mind, but if we look at *other* forms of murder/suicide this fits the pattern. It's just that most people commit that act with guns, knives, poisoning, etc, not a vehicle. They make this insulated, internal decision in their own minds that this thing is going to happen, and they won't be kept from their purpose.

Also remember some people that cannot bring themselves to attempt "traditional" suicide methods, will instead aspire to doing risky, dangerous things hoping something "beyond their power" will take care of ensuring a quick death. A death wish, I suppose is in fact what that is.

The conversation about not feeling well... Many closet alcoholics will pass off their behavior by saying "I'm under the weather, I just don't feel well..." and family will not scrutinize; even families that know of alcoholism, they don't want the confrontation.

At some point I believe something clicked in her head, her resolve solidified, and It just didn't matter who was in the car with her, she was going to do this one thing no matter what, and in her own mind, she was alone on her mission.

JMO of course.

 

[zippitydoda]

Two witnesses stated they saw DS bent over, hands on her knees, appearing to throw up around 11ish (side of the road) and 11:45 (Ramapo rest stop). Diane had a large amount of unabsorbed alcohol in her stomach - so it appears that even after throwing up, she continued to drink heavily. DS called her brother at 11:37 - why then would she continue to drink heavily, even after throwing up, if she was scared of getting caught? And if she was a closet drinker - why didn't she just drive home, drop the children off at her brother's house safe and sound, and get blasted at home for the rest of her Sunday?

Someone above asked why the gas station and McDonald people never talked - I believe they were interviewed and stated DS appeared fine and not "drunk". As for jumping onto social media for their 15 minutes - what would they say? If they said anything but DS appeared fine - and had tweeted DS was a mess and reeked of booze, they would be vilified for not alerting anyone to stop DS from driving those children to their deaths.

DS took the answers with her - and if anyone else knows why she did this, they are not talking.

 

[hot cawfeee]

And we still dont know the content of Diane's conversation with her brother---was it detailed? Was it Yes/No? Was he yelling at her?

And zippy---Yes!!! I have always questioned the McDonalds scene-Diane "persuading" the cooks to make chicken nuggets depite the early hour---I think they shied away b/c McD's is a huge corporation and if she appeared drunk/high, it would redound on the corp. and also what about liability to the cashier and manager??

 

[hot cawfeee]

corq-----I have gone back and forth on suicide as Diane's motive and am still not sure.
You bring up great points tho that are uncomfortable for me to ponder--I see alot of my m-i-l in Diane's actions-she actually would toss water bottles to my f-i-law's side of the car while they were driving-they would of course be on the fall and miraculously did not go under the gas or brake pedals--she had been trying to kill herslf for years with food, drugs but this one really took us by surprise--
Its very plausible that Diane sought to punish that day---middle finger to Danny, her brother and s-i-l and the world--------sadly so may innocent people died b/c of her.