NEIGHBOR’S FEUD TURNS FATAL
Woman accused of plowing into couple
A Seabrook, N.H., woman accused of feuding with her neighbors is now charged with murder. Police say she plowed into them while drunk — killing a retired Massachusetts Air National Guard officer and his German shepherd, and putting his wife in the hospital.
Catrina Costello, 38, was ordered held without bail yesterday at Rockingham County Superior Court on charges of second-degree murder, as well as three counts of stalking, two counts of driving under the influence and aggravated collision with serious injury, two counts of second-degree assault with extreme indifference and two counts of conduct after an accident causing death or injury.
Police said Costello accelerated at Stephen and Erin VanDalinda Wednesday evening as they walked their dog, Lucy, and kept going after striking them, smashing mailboxes and a fence in the process.
The VanDalindas had detailed more than a year of torment from their neighbor in a court “stalking petition” last September, seeking a restraining order on Costello which was granted by the court. They were in the process of selling their home when they were struck.
Stephen VanDalinda, 64, served 23 years in the Massachusetts Air National Guard and was chief nurse of the 102nd Medical Group. He had most recently worked at Exeter Hospital. Erin VanDalinda, 61, suffered serious injuries and remains hospitalized.
The neighbors had been at odds since 2016, according to court records, which are vague on how the dispute started, but refer to a complaint from Costello over tire tracks on her lawn.
Costello put up a fence, but later came on the VanDalindas’ property with two unleashed pit bulls, banging on her chest, the VanDalindas reported. Stephen VanDalinda was bitten and Lucy, the German shepherd, was “severely mauled,” in an incident that was reported to police and resulted in an insurance settlement, the VanDalindas told the court.
“I am in fear of my safety and my family’s safety due to Ms. Costello’s erratic, aggressive, accusatory, frightful and threatening behavior,” Erin VanDalinda wrote in the September 2017 court filing.
The VanDalindas reported that on several occasions when they were in their backyard, Costello was on her porch nextdoor yelling “obscenities,” giving them the finger, doing an “(expletive) dance,” and shouting, “You better watch your back” and “You are going to need protection.”
Neighbors Kay and Brian Henderson described Costello’s behavior as “strange.”
“A couple of times I saw her yelling — from the back porch and out front — yelling obscenities over towards the VanDalindas’ house,” Brian Henderson said. “I didn’t even see Stephen and Erin respond to it. They never tried to battle back in any form whatsoever.”
Kay Henderson said Erin VanDalinda would confide in her with details about Costello’s harassment.
“She would tell me at length about things . ... I was beside myself. How so much hate could come from an individual to want to do that to a beautiful husband and wife?” Kay Henderson said. “Everybody on this street loves them. If you know them, you love them.”
The Van Dalindas had accepted an offer on their well-maintained single family home where they had lived since 1997 and raised their three children, according to Seabrook Selectman and state Rep. Aboul Khan, who lives nearby on Greenleaf Drive. A portable storage unit was in their driveway yesterday.
“We are devastated,” Khan told the Herald. “They walk their dog almost every day after dinnertime and we talk to them all the time. We are so sad. … You cannot find better people than them.”
A former co-worker at Exeter Hospital, Erica Winde, said she was “devastated” by Stephen VanDalinda’s death.
“He was an extremely dedicated nurse who gave more than 100 percent to his job every day,” Winde said. “He was such a great guy. He truly was … a proud father and devoted husband.”