Houghtaling Couple is Hightailing it to Prison

Back in 2006, staged car crashes were a family affair for the Houghtaling family. In the present, two of them are heading to prison.

According to the Times Union, Joseph and Renee Houghtaling, the now-estranged couple, were found guilty in 2007 of falsifying business records in connection with an allegedly staged car crash.

These are the only convictions that have come out of the longest trial in the history of Albany County.

The 11-week court drama ended with three other members of the Houghtaling family acquitted of more than 100 insurance fraud-related charges, which had stemmed from allegations they staged car crashes for money.

An article that was written around the time of the original arrests was posted in the North Country Gazette; it discussed the Houghtaling family’s staged accident ring.

It was alleged that some of the family members staged minor crashes while other members filed the fraudulent claims. Prosecutors said that in some situations, family members would intentionally strike another driver’s car and then create false documents used in filing an insurance claim. Prosecutors showed one surveillance video taken at a Wal-Mart in Albany which showed Joseph Houghtaling waiting for an elderly woman to leave the store. He then allegedly circled the parking lot, sped up and intentionally rammed the woman’s car. A family member would then appear to begin the claims process.

Among the arrested were Frank Houghtaling, his parents, his brother, his wife and her twin sister, and one other family member, who were charged on 37 counts as the result of an investigation that began back in 2004, due to a tip from an insurance agency about a false claim that the family allegedly filed. Prosecutors state that the family was working the scam for at least a decade and had since collected hundreds of thousands of dollars.

They were charged in nine incidents in which they allegedly collected over $150,000 between March 31, 1998 and June 14, 2005. They were charged with insurance fraud, falsifying business records, grand larceny, conspiracy and corruption.

Recently, before the verdicts were read, Joseph Houghtaling tried to end it all by drinking anti-freeze in an Albany County Court restroom for fear that he could spend two decades in prison.

He ended up being sentenced to 2 to 4 years in prison, while wife Renee got a year in the Albany County jail.

The Appellate Division of state Supreme Court denied the appeal of Renee Houghtaling in December, Joseph Houghtaling in April. They tried to the take their fight to the state Court of Appeals, but were denied.