Petition seeks clemency for driver sentenced to 110 years

A petition at Change.org seeks clemency for the driver facing 110 years in prison for driving his tractor-trailer into stopped traffic in 2019 on I-70 in the Denver area.

On Monday, Dec. 13, Rogel Aguilera-Mederos was sentenced to 110 years in prison, to be served consecutively for driving a tractor-trailer into a 28-vehicle pileup on I-70 on April 25, 2019.

Aguilera-Mederos’ truck was going faster than 80 mph when it crashed around 4:50 p.m. near Denver West Parkway in Lakewood, Colo. He passed a runaway truck ramp and swerved across all three lanes of traffic. There were multiple explosions, and fire engulfed his tractor-trailer. Four men were killed in the crash. Six others were wounded.

Aguilera-Mederos is a U.S. resident from Cuba who had a commercial driver’s license from Texas. He was driving for Castellano 03 Trucking LLC, Houston, pulling a flatbed trailer of lumber.

The petition was started by Heather Gilbee of Thornton, Colo., according to an introduction to the petition. It asks Colorado Gov. Jared Polis to grant clemency and reduce the sentence. It also encourages people to contact Polis on the issue.

“This accident was not intentional, nor was it a criminal act on the driver’s part,” reads the introduction. “No one but the trucking company he is/was employed by should be held accountable for this accident.”

Aguilera-Mederos, who was 23 at the time of the collision, had a clean driving record before this incident and cooperated with authorities after the collision. He tested free of drugs or alcohol.

The Denver Post editorial board also has called for clemency for Aguilera-Mederos.

“The 26-year-old was not drunk. He was not intentionally driving recklessly because he was in a hurry or out for a thrill, or running from police. He was not even full of road rage as his semitruck accelerated down Interstate 70 out of control,” reads The Denver Post editorial.

“Rather, a tool that Aguilera-Mederos used for work failed. Whether it was from a lack of training or a lack of common sense, Aguilera-Mederos got back in his truck with the brakes smoking and hot from being used excessively to slow the heavy logging truck on the steep grades west of Denver. The brakes then failed completely and Aguilera-Mederos didn’t use the emergency ramp that could have safely stopped his truck.”

The Post earlier reported that the judge handing down the sentence was bound by state minimum sentencing law. The judge said he would have handed down a different sentence if he had the latitude, according to The Post.

Previous coverage

Read this Land Line article for a link to a video showing the tractor-trailer driving past stopped traffic before the collision.

This Land Line article about bond being set for Aguilera-Mederos, which includes some information about the driver’s employer, Castellano 03 Trucking LLC, Houston. LL