Saturday, February 16, 2013

[Updated] Report: 19-year-old woman dies on East 12th Street after night of drinking


A 19-year-old college student was found dead this morning in the lobby of 125 E. 12th St., according to published reports.

The Post reports:

A doorman discovered Jocelyn Pascucci — a Stony Brook University student from East Meadow — unconscious in the lobby of the building at East 12th Street and Third Avenue just before 5 am.

She had been bar-hopping in the neighborhood and drinking heavily, which may have exacerbated her heart condition, law enforcement officials said.

Pascucco, a Marine Vertebrate Biology major, got separated from friends and walked a short distance to the apartment building, wearing only one shoe, police sources said.

A doorman reportedly let her into the building because she looked "cold and drunk."

Updated:

The Daily News has more information.

Jocelyn and her friends spent the first part of the evening at a concert at Webster Hall, family members said. They hit a few bars afterward, but she soon got separated from her group.

Her last stop was a bar just down the block from where she collapsed, police sources said.

Richard Pascucci said he and his wife had just driven to Stony Brook to help their daughter with laundry.

"We made cookies for her and brought them to her for Valentine's Day," he said. "We always used to go fishing. I’m going to miss that."

Updated:

Several media outlets have posted Jocelyn's photo from Stony Brook's website.

28 comments:

Anonymous said...

How sad. My thoughts are with her family. I hope we find out what bars served her and they are shut down.

Jill said...

Very sad and scary, she is the same age as my son.

Shawn said...

19 years old! A fucking teenager! What the hell is going on around here?!

What is Mayor Bloomberg doing to stop this epidemic of underage drinking?

Scooby said...

@Shawn - I'd imagine the answer is NOTHING. It's all tax revenue for the city's coffers.
What SHOULD be done is ALL those "undercovers" in the East Village(and elsewhere) need to start issuing Drunk and Disorderly, Public Intoxication and whatever other tickets are warranted by this behavior. I'd imagine the scene outside places like the 13th Step and other "Woo Hoo, Bro!" Bars warrants the same tickets for blocking the sidewalk that are issued when people protest. Occupancy and MOST importantly OVERSERVING intoxicated people needs to be cracked down on. A drink or two over the limit is one thing - the falling down - not fuckin' idea where I am drunk is another. But again - it's tax revenue and - oh, yeah - it's on nyu's Village wide campus so it's ok (sarcasm sarcasm sarcasm).

Anonymous said...

They are doing nothing. Remember when underage was 17? Cities shouldn't care about drinking because the push to 21 was about driving.. BUT

I am sorry for their loss. This sucks. A lot. No one should die at 19.

Anonymous said...

It's one person. How's that an epidemic? And Bloomberg? Really? When did we start looking to the Mayor to control what young women do with their bodies? There are already laws against serving, and they seem to have worked really great in this case. We might also try to stop glamorizing drinking while we're at it, don't you think? And let's not miss the key point that she had a heart condition. It's a tragedy. If you think Bloomberg can save you from bad decisions and heart disease, it's absurd. Maybe YOU should do something for the people around you who might have a drinking problem, instead of posting on EV.

Anonymous said...

@Scooby,
You may very well get that wish of "issuing Drunk and Disorderly, Public Intoxication and whatever other tickets are warranted by this behavior" in the EV.Because as you say in your post summons are also"tax revenue for the city's coffers".

Anonymous said...

There should be no drinking age.

I am sorry for their loss.

Do not trust the ny post exploitation.

Anonymous said...

Brilliant plan! EV Grieve commenter to stop young females from binge drinking!

This generation is the most vulgar yet. They take their cues from reality TV. They debase themselves mimicking these fake shows that glamorize alcoholism and violence.

Anonymous said...

thing is with drinking, you are fine in the warm bar but when you walk out and hit the cold air, your body reacts and the alcohol hits you. all at once.

This is esoecially true for people who are alcoholic types who don't know they are unable to drink safely. Some people can, some people can't.
I'm not saying she is but she reminds me very much of alcoholic types
They don't FEEL drunk. The drink numbs them. They feel fine. Then they hit the cold air...

I agree that drinking is seen to be hip, makes me feel grown up, it'll help me sleep, it's what kerouc did to be creative... all those lies are still out there...

What people need is more information - to know if they are the alcoholic type of drinker or not.

If they are, they need help and more information about their condition.

Some people can have two drinks and put it down and go home safely. Some people pick up the first drink and cannot stop drinking. It's weird but true and those people dont have to feel ashamed. It's just the way they are...

Young people tend to notice they drink differently but they don't know what to do about it.
They want to be like their friends.
They aren't going to talk about it with anyone, they are going to try and get the hang of it.

They also won't be able to go to the doctor to find out about the heart condition if they are numbed out by their drinking behaviour.

I am sad to hear this.

Death is so mysterious...

Anonymous said...

God dammit. Why does everything have to be an argument against Bloomberg? Did he personally create her heart condition? Did he personally validate her fake ID? He's done horrible things, but get over yourself and be a human for once. This has nothing to do with him and everything to do with a life taken too soon and a family in grieving.

We're collectively grieving a neighborhood, something that is living and breathing and is a part of all of us, but they're grieving a life, so let's please respect that.

RIP. It's terrible to see anyone pass away at such a young age.

Marc Kehoe said...

I think the point here involving the Mayor is that he seems to ramrod into the personal lives and habits of all of us, but not when it comes to the epidemic of binge drinking. ($9 pints and $18 mixed drinks, anyone?) During this administration the EV and the LES (and and and)have fallen victim to the city- which seems to have handed out liquor licenses like they were parking tickets. Santacon, anyone? Mr. Mayor has expressed his support of the addition of that particular joyous new tradition to the NYC calendar.

Anonymous said...

They should close all the bars in nyc at 1am or even midnight! That would solve the problems. The city that never sleeps needs a rest!

Anonymous said...

East Village has too many Bars especially the Dive Bars there is little enforcement of the drinking age down here NYPD community service personnel should be out in enforce Friday Saturday Nights checking these places...They are more interested in enforcing dogs in bars (I have a service dog) I can't tell you how many times these knuckleheads have to be told and shown his license yes we have our priorities right! to paraphrase Young "this is one more kid who will never finish school"

Anonymous said...

People -- she had a heart condition. This has nothing to do with Bloomberg. This could have been a death due to circumstances out of this young girl's hands. I just hope it wasn't a situation where her friends left her all alone. Bad for any person, esp a young woman. God rest her soul.

Anonymous said...

What a sad story, but not a surprise. This happens to be the block we live on -- we are surrounded by neighbors and the Third Avenue "strip" of bars, where people start early and leave late. Aren't bar employees supposed to stop serving the obviously intoxicated?

It is a tragedy for her family.

Unfortunately, the epidemic of drinking (both under and "of" age) is going to have long-term repercussions in the society.

But it's not just NYC, it's pretty much everywhere, and whoever said it's the "glam" factor is right. This is just the saddest version of the truth of too much booze. There are a lot of destructive things about it. We are watching (and trying to help) as it is destroying two generations of two different family members... and that's just our families.

ahoy polloi said...

You know what would have avoided this tragedy? Better friends.

Jill said...

Not an epidemic? Talk to any emt or emergency room staff and they'll tell you otherwise.

Anonymous said...

12:44PM,

An epidemic that is less severe than it was 30 years ago and has been going on for over 50 years in the neighborhood?

1:38 AM,

"This generation" commits less crime, doesn't hit the rock at the same rate and won't get to benefit from an economy based on government largesse like we did. So maybe you want to tone it down a bit.

Anonymous said...

Part of me wants to blame her friends for not keeping track of her but then I think back to the time I was with drunk friends when I was younger and how hard it was to get them under control. This sad incident also has me thinking back to that drunk guy who was crossing 12th Street against the light not last New Year's Eve but the one before. He fell, and his friends who were walking with him trying to hold him up didn't have time to pick him up and he got hit by a motorcycle. I don't know if he lived or died but I think about him whenever I cross that street at night. Maybe if these incidents get more publicity it would have an impact. Then again maybe it wouldn't.

Giovanni said...

The other tragedy here is that every storefront business that isn't a bank is looking for ways to serve alcohol as its the only way to pay the outrageous rents that Bloomberg has promoted via condo development and rezoning, and his policies are responsible for the skyrocketing cost of living.

A simple solution would be making everyone wo wants a drink take a breathalyzer test. If you're over the limit, have a soft drink and wait until you're sober.

But I would bet all the quarters iunder Bloombergs sofa cushions that he would object, the same way he objected to the teachers unions divesting their funds from gun manufacturers.

Anything that stops the flow of cash to businesses or landlords or Wall Street is something Bloomberg can't stand, even if if will save lives. This is the tue price of unbridled capitalism, children dying in the street while landlords and bar owners prosper.

Anonymous said...

A simple solution would be making everyone wo wants a drink take a breathalyzer test. If you're over the limit

Over what limit?

Oh, are you referring to the legal limit for driving? Because someone who is not driving can be well over that arbitrary number without being particularly intoxicated. That would fit in well with the Bloomberg nanny-state, but somehow I feel if Bloomberg made it law, you would be against it...

Dave - everywhere said...

I recently lost my oldest son to a similar incident. My most heartfelt sympathies to the family, whose grief is seemingly overwhelming at this time.

Over-consumption of this type was a problem in 1972 when I was 19 and it probably will be the same in another 40 years. The kids graduating from high school today have been subject to the most intensive education on substance abuse (drinking, drugs and smoking) since they started elementary school but it seems to have little impact on their consumption decisions. Maturity helps resolve a lot of this behavior but increased enforcement of existing laws has to be part of the solution as well as curtailing the attractiveness of getting stupid drunk.

KairosKim said...

My heart goes out to the you woman's parents and to Dave @ 1:44 today. The loss of one's child is a pain beyond grief.
There is wild in every generation and every older and wiser too.
Let's move forward and strive to set a good example for the youth, everyday.

Crazy Eddie said...

With Webster Hall in the mix, my opinion, I bet there’s some Ecstasy factor involved here as well. I hope her friends come clean for the sake of her family and for her classmates as well.

Anonymous said...

For those of you that don't think this is an epidemic it is. Being an East Villager I've seen the neighborhood go down hill with each and every new dorm that opens up. The amount of Freshmen and Sophmore college students stumbling around the 2nd and 3rd Ave bars at the wee hours of the morning are astonishing. Something has to be done -- fine individuals and proprietors to a point that they either actively stop serving underage kids or go out of business. The neighborhood doesn't need this. And the people that live/work in the neighborhood shouldn't have to deal with broken windows, puke all over the sidewalks, passed out kids on stoops, or random passersby that end up dieing in the lobby of a building.

Anonymous said...

As a bartender in this neighborhood over the last 20 years, I have a couple of observations:

1. Do we know what this girl's blood alcohol level was? Do we know that it was over a legal limit? The heart condition may have had more to do with her death than anything else.

2. The cops are ALWAYS stinging the East Village bars with undercover officers. They are a constant presence. You as a customer may not know who is a cop and who is not, but they are definitely there. They also play fun little games, like having an older gentlemen go to the bar to buy two budweisers. The second person (the underage person) is in the bathroom. It's why most bars now need to ask to see the ID of the other person drinking. Usually, this means that a middle aged gentleman needs to call his wife up from her seat to come to the bar and show her ID. But in the case of a sting, it's the kid in the bathroom trick and if you aren't able to reach that kid before the cop gives him/her the beer that he just bought, you get fined and ticketed and summoned to court. We all know to look out for the sting. But if the bar is slammed during a happy hour, you may not be able to see everyone in the room. It doesn't mean that the bartender ever served a minor directly.

3. I ask to see id's of up to 200 a people a day. Only about once every three months do I confiscate a fake ID. Most underage drinkers know to go to neighborhoods that don't card as heavily (East Village is a neighborhood that cards extremely heavily).

4. Lastly, there are people who do not display the typical signs of inebriation. Some just get more quiet. Some you don't even see since their friends come to the bar (after everyone had been carded hours ago) and orders rounds for the group. Unless you have a personal bartender for every person in the room, someone is going to get over-served. And not likely by the bartender. The bartender wants tips. Drunk people don't tip well. They usually just end up vomiting all over the bar and on us. We cut them off and give them a glass of water and then usually ask them to leave.

5. Oh wait, one more fun tidbit--the kids who live in the East Village do a lot of house partying after they go to the bars (they can do loads of cheap coke at home whereas the bars won't let them go into the bathroom three at a time). Sometimes, these herds of overly intoxicated and looney people are the end result of such festivities.

In short, the point is that you can only police people so much. Bars are getting stings on a regular basis. Bartenders are at most East Village establishments are forced to go to TIPS training classes in order to be certain that they know when to stop serving a person. And, in the end, it's a person's own responsibility to look after their own well being and health. Hopefully, they have some friends to help them with that as well. But you can only blame the existence of bars and alcohol so much. Education not prohibition.

--Bartender who has seen it all (and it's not worse than it was before).

glamma said...

i also blame bloomberg and the awful environment he has personally encouraged here. you could include ray kelly as well.