Bench trial for Quincy woman charged with killing four in August 2020 crash delayed until summer

QUINCY — A bench trial for a Quincy woman facing four counts of first-degree murder after a 2020 accident has been pushed back two months.

Natasha McBride, 39, appeared Tuesday morning in Adams County Circuit Court with her attorney, Public Defender Todd Nelson, before Judge Tad Brenner.

McBride chose on Jan. 31 to have a bench trial instead of a jury trial. Brenner set the dates for the bench trial to be May 1-3. However, Nelson filed a motion to continue the case on March 3, and Brenner removed the trial from the May calendar.

Nelson told Brenner during Tuesday’s status hearing that both experts he intends to call in this case — one from Springfield, one from Chicago — would be available between July 17 and August. Nelson and Assistant State’s Attorney Todd Eyler said they thought setting aside three days would be sufficient for the trial.

Brenner picked July 31 and Aug. 1-2 for the bench trial.

McBride allegedly ran a traffic light at Fourth and Broadway while speeding on Aug. 14, 2020. She drove her vehicle into another vehicle driven by Jenniffer Hendricks, 54, of Rushville. Hendricks and three grandchildren — Dakota Corrick, 6, Archer Corrick, 4, and Ransom Corrick, 21 months, all of Kirksville, Mo. — were killed.

The state charged McBride on Aug. 17, 2020, with four counts of reckless homicide, four counts of driving on a revoked license and four courts of leaving the scene of a personal injury accident. The state charged McBride on Aug. 20, 2020, in an indictment with those same offenses, plus four counts of first-degree murder.

McBride remains in the Adams County Jail on $5 million bond.