What Did Diane Schuler Do? Exploring the Events Behind HBO’s "There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane"

Diane Schuler is the protagonist of the 2011 HBO documentary There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane. which explores a tragic motorway accident on July 26, 2009. The crash resulted in the deaths of eight people, including Diane, her 2-year-old daughter, and three nieces. The sole survivor was Diane’s 5-year-old son. This incident is considered one of the most horrific accidents in recent decades.

The HBO documentary attempts to present a fact-based retelling of the event and features the following official synopsis:

“This documentary explores the depth behind the case of a woman whose vehicle collision killed numerous people, including herself. Was she really the reckless drunk, or the perfect suburban mother?”

Here, we look at everything that is known about the tragic incident that occurred on the Taconic State Parkway in the town of Mount Pleasant, near Briarcliff Manor, New York. Schuler was seen driving aggressively and erratically, for reasons unknown.

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Diane Schuler was involved in a horrific car crash that left multiple dead in July 2009

Diane Schuler had been visiting the Hunter Lake Campground with several members of her family. This included her husband Daniel Schuler, along with their two children, and her three nieces. The vehicle she was driving was a red 2003 Ford Windstar, even as her husband left in a separate car along with the family dog.

However, due to unbeknownst reasons, Schuler was seen driving aggressively and erratically, with surveillance footage not suggesting the reasons for the same. The footage was taken from a gas station in Liberty, and Diane Schuler did not only look sober, but she had also been driving normally until that point.

However, at around 1 pm, she shared in a phone call to her brother that she was feeling disoriented and was having trouble seeing. The same was corroborated by her nieces, as Schuler was advised by her brother to stay off the road.

However, she did not heed and continued to drive in the wrong direction on the Taconic State Parkway. This, minutes later, resulted in a head-on collision which led to the immediate deaths of several individuals.

This included three men traveling in an SUV in addition to Schuler’s own relatives. They were later identified as 81-year-old Michael Bastardi, his 49-year-old son Guy, and the 74-year-old Dan Longo. An autopsy report later revealed that Diane Schuler had a blood-alcohol content of 0.19%, which was more than twice the legally allowed limit.

Further, there were traces of significant THC in her blood, as a bottle of vodka was also found in the wreckage of the car. The investigators at the time said the following about the broken bottle of vodka:

“It wasn’t discovered at the time of the accident. We couldn’t really see it. But it was found when the accident reconstruction guys were removing the seats.”

In the aftermath of the incident, Bryan Schuler, who was the sole survivor of the unfortunate crash, has been dubbed a ‘miracle child.’ The documentary itself includes interviews with several family members of Diane Schuler, along with Bryan himself.

It also includes a range of interviews and recordings from Diane Schuler's past and has been directed by Liz Garbus. Diane was 36 years old at the time, and her husband, Daniel, who has been a stark defender of her, is also a part of the documentary.

Daniel had maintained since the incident that his wife did not have alcohol problems, and had sought for another medical examination of her blood samples. The documentary, There's Something Wrong with Aunt Diane, continues to be available to stream on HBO Max.