Limo Operator Faces 40 Counts in Crash That Killed 20 People

The son of a limousine company's owner has been indicted on 40 felony counts in the deaths of 20 people in a crash in Upstate New York last fall. Nauman Hussain hired the driver involved in the crash, the complaint says, though he knew the driver didn't have the required license, CNN reports. He also should have known that the limo, a modified Ford Excursion, had mechanical deficiencies that would have affected the brakes. The limo "was not supposed to be on the road," New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said; it had failed an inspection a month before the crash. The driver, Scott Lisinicchia, was taking 17 people to a birthday party when the limo plowed through a stop sign and struck a parked SUV. The victims included two pedestrians and four sisters who were in the vehicle. Hussain is to be arraigned Wednesday on 20 counts of second-degree manslaughter and 20 counts negligent homicide in the deaths faces a litany of charges.

The community is still struggling with the emotional fallout from the horrific crash, WRGB reports. "I did 13 years of combat," said the county's emergency services director, "and this is right up there with some pretty bad stuff." Residents are raising money for a memorial to the victims, and a wellness day is planned this fall to help first responders. "Everybody now is going to be focused on the news and what's happening with the trial and everything," said Jessica Kirby, who owns a store across from where the crash happened and started a nonprofit to build the memorial. "For us the focus is always on the innocent lives that were lost." (The condition of the limo worried one victim.)