A prosecutor within the now-viral case of a jailed Colorado trucker has been slammed for penning a tone-deaf Fb submit as requires the motive force’s sentence to be commuted intensify.
Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, an immigrant from Cuba, was sentenced to 110 years in jail on Dec. 13 after the brakes on his tractor-trailer failed in 2019, inflicting the then-23-year-old to lose management on Interstate 70 exterior of Lakewood, Colorado. Twenty-eight automobiles have been broken within the fiery crash that killed 4 and injured dozens.
The hefty sentence has sparked days of protests, with at least 4.5 million people signing a petition for clemency and scores of truckers vowing to boycott Colorado.
Including to the outrage, NBC 9 Denver reported {that a} screenshot of a submit made by Jefferson County Deputy District Lawyer Kayla Wildeman on her private Fb web page had made its rounds in authorized circles. In it, she thanked a colleague for making a trophy of a brake shoe to have fun the conviction.
The date of the submit is unclear, and screenshots of the unique have been repeatedly shared.
Together with the photograph, Wildeman wrote, “Get your self a trial companion as nice as Trevor Moritzky. He turned a brake shoe from a semi truck right into a memento. What a particular present from a very particular individual. I by no means requested for a brand new bff at work, not to mention one that’s sufficiently old to be my father (no offense) however I positive am grateful this trial introduced you into my profession as each a colleague and a pal! Phrases won’t ever convey how fortunate I’m to have gotten the chance to study from you!”
The Denver Channel on ABC 7 reported that Moritzky is a senior district legal professional who labored with Wildeman on the case.
The League of United Latin American Citizens condemned the submit, calling for “quick disciplinary motion and a proper apology,” in line with ABC 7.
District attorney Alexis King launched an announcement on Dec. 20, saying Wildeman’s “submit was in very poor style” and didn’t mirror the general views of her workplace. King clarified that the brake shoe in Wildeman’s submit was not proof from the case.
Leonard Martinez, certainly one of Aguilera-Mederos’ attorneys, mentioned, “To make any form of mockery or behave as if this was a ball sport of profitable and shedding is an outrage. This was about 4 individuals shedding their lives and one other individual going through the prospect of a 110-year jail sentence.”
Social media has not been quiet since Aguilera-Mederos’ extraordinary sentence was handed down. Truck drivers began an internet marketing campaign #NoTrucksToColorado, vowing to not journey via Colorado.
“#NoTrucksToColorado. #Colorado actually smells like white supremacy answerable for justice,” posted a Twitter user.
“#NoTrucksToColorado I’m right here for it!” another added. “I don’t even care if my packages are delayed. Let him out!”
The case has sparked renewed curiosity in Colorado’s mandatory-minimum sentencing legal guidelines. Jail sentences must be successive in instances that cope with “crimes of violence.” The Associated Press reported that Aguilera-Mederos, who was convicted on 27 counts—together with vehicular murder and reckless driving—obtained a sentence twice so long as some homicide convicts.
Prosecutors had argued that Aguilera-Mederos checked his brakes shortly earlier than the crash, and had handed a minimum of one emergency ramp he might have used. Through the sentencing listening to, the choose mentioned he believed Aguilera-Mederos didn’t imply any hurt and deserved a lesser sentence, however his arms have been tied by the state’s sentencing legal guidelines.
After his conviction, Aguilera-Mederos, who beforehand had a clear report, advised CBS4 Denver that he wished he had died as a substitute of the 4 who have been killed.
A web based petition for Aguilera-Mederos to be granted clemency, which had reached greater than 4.5 million signatures by Tuesday, was Change.org’s fastest-growing of the year.
An legal professional for Aguilera-Mederos advised Fox 31 Colorado that his staff is within the means of submitting an application for clemency however he wouldn’t elaborate. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis’ workplace mentioned that it’s open to a request for clemency and could be well timed about its consideration ought to an software be obtained.
