Limo plea hearing is adjourned

Conference over whether to accept deal resumes July 7

A conference held Thursday on whether the judge overseeing the criminal case against Nauman Hussain should accept a plea deal in the matter ended without a clear resolution.

The Schoharie County Clerk’s office said the conference between the Schoharie County district attorney’s office and Hussain’s attorneys was adjourned until July 7.

Hussain is the only person to be criminally charged in connection with the 2018 limo crash in Schoharie that killed 20 people.

Talks between Hussain’s attorney, Lee Kindlon, and District Attorney Susan Mallery have stretched on for months. The terms of the potential plea deal are unknown.

Hussain has pleaded not guilty in the case and has been free on bond since his April 2019 arraignment.

Kindlon and Mallery previously met virtually with Schoharie County Judge George Bartlett III on June 23 to discuss a potential plea deal, but no agreement was reached.

Hussain is accused of ignoring orders by the state Department of Transportation to keep his 2001 stretch Ford Excursion limo off the road after it was repeatedly deemed unsafe by a DOT investigator, as well as using a driver who lacked the appropriate license.

On Oct. 6, 2018, Hussain booked a party of 17 to ride in the Excursion from Amsterdam to Cooperstown for a birthday celebration. After the driver appeared to have gotten lost, he lost control of the limo driving down Route 30 toward the village of Schoharie, and slammed into an SUV in the parking lot of the Apple Barrel Country Store at the intersection of Route 30 and Route 30A while going more than 100 mph.

Two bystanders who were walking toward the SUV were killed instantly by the initial impact, and the Excursion then slammed into a ditch. All 18 aboard, including the driver, died from their injuries.

Brake failure was to blame, according to a State Police report. A National Transportation Safety Board report also blamed bad brakes. The NTSB also faulted the DOT and DMV for not doing enough to prevent the tragedy.

Paul Buckowski / Times Union A conference about whether a judge will accept a plea deal in Nauman Hussain’s criminal case ended without a resolution. The hearing will resume on July 7.