Professor had ‘long-running dispute’ with her neighbors

Lawyer: Car keying a ‘misunderstanding’

The lawyer for Duquesne University professor Audrey Guskey, who is accused of keying multiple vehicles, issued a statement calling the incidents a “misunderstanding.”

“My client like most folks have disputes with their neighbors from time to time and we are hopeful this can be resolved at the preliminary hearing and collectively all grow stronger from this misunderstanding,” attorney Phil DiLucente said in a written statement Thursday.

Police charged Ms. Guskey, 62, of Bridgeville, with three counts of criminal mischief after her neighbor video-recorded her keying multiple vehicles on Gregg Avenue in June.

Reached by phone for further comment, Mr. DiLucente said Ms. Guskey’s actions were “reactionary to a long-running dispute” over parking.

The neighbor, Zachary

McGill, told police that he had been “having trouble” with Ms. Guskey and that she “gets upset when vehicles are parked in front of her residence.”

The criminal complaint, filed July 18, states that Ms. Guskey admitted to damaging four vehicles multiple times.

Ms. Guskey, a marketing and consumer behavior expert, teaches at Duquesne’s Palumbo Donahue School of Business.

She has appeared as an expert in numerous print outlets and on cable and network television news programs.

A university representative issued a written statement on Wednesday saying that the school is “troubled and deeply disheartened by the events.”

“The allegations, if true, would not reflect the University’s mission in any fashion.

‘We will await further facts as this matter proceeds through the justice system,” Tammy Ewin, of the university’s marketing and communications office, wrote.

Ms. Guskey’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 21.

Ms. Guskey did not return calls seeking comment.