An unconscious car caused by a limo driver was not safe, according to the family's lawyer

But every time Scott Lisinicchia – the 53-year-old driver in the terrible limousine accident that killed him, 17 passengers and two passersby – killed him, he was clear: he was not going driving a car that was not in good condition, she said.

"He did not want to put anyone in danger," she said on Tuesday.

Now, his widow in mourning is trying to figure out what could have gone wrong. She believes that this must have been a mechanical problem or a state of the road.

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She said that she prays for the other victims of the accident and wishes to be able to tell their families how much "he took to heart and considered how much he wished that they were all safe. ".

The Lake George resident was driving 17 people for a birthday trip to the Ommegang Brewery in Cooperstown, about 40 km west of Schoharie, where the accident occurred.

Shortly before 2:00 pm, he headed to a road 30 hill, but crossed a stop sign, crossed Highway 30A and struck an unoccupied sport utility vehicle in the Apple Barrel parking lot. Country Store and Cafe. The impact resulted in the sport utility vehicle divided into two men standing in the parking lot. The 18 people in the limousine and the two men were killed.

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It was the most deadly road accident in the United States in 13 years. Governor Andrew Cuomo ordered the state's flags to ring half-staff as early as Thursday until the burial of the last victim; the flags were already mid-staff from Monday to Wednesday to celebrate the weekend of the memory of fallen firefighters.

Scott Lisinicchia had a commercial driver's license but did not have the "passenger rating" required to drive 15 or more adult passengers, the authorities said Monday.

The vehicle, owned by Prestige Limousine, was a 2001 Ford Excursion that did not get the proper certification after being converted into a limousine, the authorities said. A month before the accident, it was also ordered to put it out of service due to inadequate maintenance and a faulty emergency exit.

The couple met 11 years ago in an Elks Lodge and married the following year. Kim Lisinicchia had a 7-year-old daughter and a 14-year-old son, and Scott Lisinicchia "accepted my children as his, and that takes a lot," she said.

He had driven semi-trailers for years, then dump trucks, but a hip injury made driving large vehicles difficult and he stopped. One operation helped, but Scott Lisinicchia was tired of the trucks and became a taxi driver.

Last year, he saw on Craigslist that the Prestige in Wilton, about 20 miles away, was looking for a limo driver.

He responded to the announcement and started working for them on weekends. During the week, he was an Uber driver.

The Lisinicchias would drive everywhere, most recently in Florida, where Kim Lisinicchia's daughter was competing. They loved campfires and watching movies at home.

On Saturday he was in a good mood, even though he had said that he had to change limos for a problem, she said.

"He left in a good mood," she said. "He said" I love you. "I said I like you". "

While he was out there, she was still hearing, so she said that she was very surprised not to have called for several hours.

George Longworth, the Lisinicchia family's lawyer, and Richard Burke, investigator and former police commissioner in Mount Vernon, visited the scene of the accident on Monday. Kim Lisinicchia said that she did not believe that her husband knew about the intersection.

Burke described it as the bottom of a mountain with a posted speed limit of 50 mph, where it would be difficult to stop if there was a problem with the brakes .

"The family thinks he's unknowingly received a vehicle that was not fit to ride or safe for any of its occupants," Longworth said in a statement.

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He urged people to reserve their judgment until the New York State Police and the National Transportation Safety Board complete their investigations.

Burke said that he had learned from Lisinicchia's twin brother that the autopsy had revealed no medical problems that could contribute to the accident.

Before deleting her Facebook page on Monday, Kim Lisinicchia announced that "Scotty" was her best friend.

Photos of the drone, October 8, 2018, on Routes 30 and 30A in Schoharie, New York, where a limousine car accident killed 17 passengers, the driver, as well as 2 additional pedestrians two days ago. (Photo: Ricky Flores and Peter Carr, The Journal (Westchester County, N.Y.))

"It really hurts me to have to bury my husband," she wrote.

She has also posted a link to a GoFundMe page that a friend has set up for contributions to help the family with funeral expenses. Tuesday night, 80 people had donated more than $ 3,000 on a goal of $ 15,000.

The page contained hurtful comments about Kim Lisinicchia's husband as the driver who caused the tragedy. In the days following the accident, she read them as well as others on social networks.

"How can people be so cruel?" she asked. "I understand that people are angry, I'm angry too, but I'm not going to attack anyone who has just lost anyone of major in their lives." I lost the & # 39; 39, love of my life. "

She never went to the intersection and she said she never wanted it.

"I do not want to be reminded of it," she says. "I want to remember my husband the very moment I left him that day." I said "I love you." I l 'l veux veux l l l l l Je Je Je Je I kissed … He was happy. "