remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

The groom told the limo guy he was going to gut him like a fish




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Parents brawl at kids' play
Dispute over seats leads to arrest of mother, son in St. Clare's auditorium
Tuesday, December 21, 2004
By DOUG AUER
STATEN ISLAND ADVANCE
The Christmas spirit turned sour yesterday when two parents fought over seats to watch their children perform at a holiday pageant inside a packed Great Kills pre-school auditorium.

Venus Guerrieri, 59, and her son, Charles H. Balducci, 29, both of East Augusta Avenue, Great Kills, were arrested on the grounds of St. Clare's parish and charged with third-degree assault, a misdemeanor.

According to police sources, Mrs. Guerrieri and Balducci had attacked a woman who said the duo -- along with Balducci's wife, Sabrina, and their 1-year-old son -- were sitting in seats she had claimed at the pageant in St. Clare's Pre-School, located on Nelson Avenue.


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The show went on after the incident.

The victim, whose full name was officially withheld by police, was treated at Staten Island University Hospital, Prince's Bay, for minor injuries and released, officials said.

Her husband is a retired police officer.

'My neck, face, hair -- my whole body hurts,' said the woman, who identified herself only as Cathy, speaking with the Advance at her Tompkinsville home last night. She'd gone to the event to see her 3-year-old daughter perform, she said.

At about 11:45 a.m., Cathy said, she left her purse with another parent to mark off three seats for her family to watch the show.

The seats, folding chairs, were apparently located in the second row from where the performance would take place in the school's lower-level auditorium.

Cathy said she went to check on the whereabouts of her husband, Rob, who was parking the car. With him were her mother and her other daughter, who is 1.

DISPUTE ERUPTS

Upon her return, Cathy said, she found her purse moved and Balducci placing his jacket over her seats. 'I said to him, 'Excuse me, I'm sitting here and those are my seats,'' she said.

It's here where Balducci's account differs.

He said that he had been in the seats for about 15 minutes, saving them for members of his family, when Cathy approached him and got 'up in [his] face with her hands.'

'She called me a piece of [expletive],' Balducci told the Advance by telephone.

Cathy counters that it was Balducci who used profanity.

'I told him there was no need for this at my daughter's pageant,' she said.

Balducci claimed that as his mother, Mrs. Guerrieri, handed his daughter off to his wife, Cathy swung at her.

The two women got into a 'catfight,' according to Balducci, pulling each other's hair.

Cathy disputed that, saying Mrs. Guerrieri kept bumping into her, almost causing her to fall.

All the while, she said, Balducci was acting menacingly, threatening her with violence.

She revealed two large areas on either side of her rear scalp where chunks of hair were missing, injuries she said were caused by Mrs. Guerrieri and Balducci, who also allegedly jumped on top of her.

She alleged that Balducci also punched her in her left forehead, and then slammed the right side of her face onto a table.

Balducci stated that he only tried to break up the fight and never hit Cathy.

He further said that it was actually Cathy who hit his mother, a woman he called a 'senior citizen,' and that he'll be taking her to be medically examined today.

'I was a little bit surprised her husband didn't step forward to break up the fight as quickly as I did,' Balducci said. 'I was even more surprised it became a matter that had to go into the hands of the police instead of us talking it out.'

POLICE INTERVENE

Cathy's husband, Rob, said that calling the authorities was the proper thing to do.

'I just got beat up! I just got beat up!' Rob said his wife yelled, as she ran toward him in the parking lot.

He and others called 911, he said.

'If I did to him what he did to my wife, it would put me at his level,' said Rob, visibly angry over his wife's injuries.

Balducci and Mrs. Guerrieri were placed under arrest by police officers from the Mid-Island's 122nd Precinct at 1:17 p.m. They are to appear in court at a later date.

Balducci said the police response was elicited because Cathy's husband is a former member of the service.

Rob, however, said the authorities were notified because of the extent of his wife's injuries.

Cathy said she was told at the hospital that she will need to see a hair specialist.

MTV SHOW

Balducci demonstrated similar violent tendencies during a 2002 MTV program, focusing on people preparing to marry, Rob said. On the episode, Balducci launched into a profanity-laced tirade aimed at the limousine driver who was late picking him up for the wedding.

Balducci acknowledged being on the show, but said he was only acting according to the producer's request.

'He is trying to attack the fact that I've been on television,' said Balducci, referring to the former cop.

Meanwhile, Cathy's husband is asking anyone with videotape of the incident to come forward.

Rob is also asking that the school not allow Balducci to return for functions, nor allow his son to remain enrolled.

'The victims are the kids,' said Balducci, noting that he is member of the school's fund-raising board and has personally given numerous donations.

'It rips my heart out of my chest that I missed seeing my son say the Pledge of Allegiance,' he said.

Cathy and Rob said they plan to file an order of protection against the Balduccis and Mrs. Guerrieri.

Balducci said that if a lawsuit is pursued, he will countersue for damages.

Doug Auer covers police and fire news for the Advance. He may be reached at [email protected].

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

'My hair hurts'

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

could you imagine though, DH and I never go to any Staten Island bars, there are always fights, even at Chevy' s there are always fights, but at a school pagent? DH is so ready to go back to FL

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

FM.

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

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Posted by Kriss2c

'My hair hurts'

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Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

This guy was so obnoxious on that MTV show!

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

Wow, I remember watching that episode. I thought he was such an a-hole. Looks like he learned it from his mother.

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

Ah, my hometown! I grew up in Great Kills, not far from that church. Does anyone wonder why I could not wait to move off Staten Island?!

Janice, in my 25 years living on SI, I have been to 1 SI bar, and that was shortly before I got married.

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

Remember at the wedding he goes to change into his club gear

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

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Posted by Jax430

Ah, my hometown! I grew up in Great Kills, not far from that church. Does anyone wonder why I could not wait to move off Staten Island?!

Janice, in my 25 years living on SI, I have been to 1 SI bar, and that was shortly before I got married.

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It is really bad, these people are so angry, my DH works at Chevys and they have security to break up fights!! It is a family restaurant.....too many angry people in too small of a place


His wife worked at Avanti on Hylan

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

What an a-hole...I can so see them beating up a woman at some Church function. How unfortunate that people like that are able to procreate..

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

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Posted by ambersmom

What an a-hole...I can so see them beating up a woman at some Church function. How unfortunate that people like that are able to procreate..

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I know! They already had a child before they got married & on the MTV show they were trying to get ready for their reharsal & SCREAMING at each other with him in the car. Poor kid.

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

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Posted by Janice

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Posted by Jax430

Ah, my hometown! I grew up in Great Kills, not far from that church. Does anyone wonder why I could not wait to move off Staten Island?!

Janice, in my 25 years living on SI, I have been to 1 SI bar, and that was shortly before I got married.

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It is really bad, these people are so angry, my DH works at Chevys and they have security to break up fights!! It is a family restaurant.....too many angry people in too small of a place


His wife worked at Avanti on Hylan

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Those classless types of people (no offense to my friends in the classless crew) are basically the reason I wanted to leave SI. By no means is everyone on the island like that, but that personality type seems to be WAY too salient.

I've never seen the fights at Chevy's but I believe it. It's a shame - my sister and brother in law take my nephews there all the time..I hope they never witness anything like that.

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

I remember that MTV show - that couple was so classless and trashy!!

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

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Posted by Valentinegirl

This guy was so obnoxious on that MTV show!

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they both were!

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

I remember that episode. I also remember cringing through the whole thing thinking how tacky and obnoxious the couple was. And his tirade about the limo being late....YIKES.

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

What a way to show off that Christmas Spirit!

Re: remember True Life I'm Getting Married, the crazy SI couple?

that true life was almost as good as 'True Life: I'm in a share house' at the jersey shore....