More than 3 million people have signed a petition in support of Rogel Aguilera-Mederos—a truck driver who received a 110-year prison sentence over a deadly highway crash.
Aguilera-Mederos was 23 years old when he lost control of his semi-truck while traveling on Interstate 70 in Lakewood, Colorado. He told authorities the semi’s brakes went out as he approached a traffic jam due to a separate accident. Aguilera-Mederos claimed he was traveling at just 45 mph when he realized the brakes were failing; however, the truck reportedly reached a speed of 85 mph as he struggled to stay within the lanes.
Video showed Aguilera-Mederos passing a truck runway ramp designed for these types of emergencies. His truck eventually crashed into stopped traffic, causing a 28-car pileup that killed four people: Miguel Angel Lamas Arellano, 24; William Bailey, 67; Doyle Harrison, 61; and Stanley Politano, 69.
Authorities say no drugs or alcohol were involved in the fiery crash, and road rage didn’t appear to be a factor. He was ultimately convicted on 27 criminal counts, including vehicular manslaughter, first-degree assault, first-degree attempt to commit assault, vehicular assault, reckless driving, and careless driving. He was found not guilty on more than a dozen counts of first-degree attempt to commit assault.
“There doesn’t seem to be an intentionality of murder, and he’s getting a sentence that would rival a mass murderer,” attorney Bryan Kuhn said, as reported by FOX 2 Now. “I think that is not sitting well, I think a lot of people think there maybe should be a long jail sentence, but this may be just a little too much for some folks … “I can’t think of the last case here, or anywhere else, where somebody committed a negligent or reckless crime that resulted in such a sentence,” he said. “It’s really telling of how the government can come down and really crush someone if they want to.”
Following Monday’s sentencing hearing, Heather Gilbee launched a Change.org petition calling for a commutation of the sentence. The petition, which was directed at Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, had garnered more than 3.3 million signatures as of Friday night.
“This accident was not intentional, nor was it a criminal act on the drivers part,” the petition read in part. “No one but the trucking company he is/was employed by should be held accountable for this accident [...] Rogel has said several times that he wishes he had the courage to crash and take his own life that day, this tragic accident wasn’t done with Intent, it wasn’t a criminal act, it was an accident. Since he has been sentenced, I have changed this to granting Rogel clemency or commutation-as time served.”
Polis said he is aware of the case, but has yet to receive a clemency request from Aguilera-Mederos.
