Colorado prosecutor showed off brake-shoe gift after helping convict 26-year-old trucker sentenced to 110 years for deadly crash

[Toni]

It's almost certain that he did not register that he had a chance to use the runoff ramp. He surely was panicked. I would have been.

Well, that's on him. His poor judgment and lack of composure cost four innocent people their lives and injured several others.

That said, I think the mandatory sentencing resulted in excessive length of sentence.

But some serious punishment is in order. "Time served" is not an appropriate sentence here!

At his age, he could not have been a very experienced rig driver. And who knows how one will behave in an emergency. He may not have seen the runoff in time or may not have thought he could effect the maneuver. Or he may have simply panicked.

Maybe you’ve never made a driving error. I have and I’m grateful no one was hurt.

 

[Derec]

Crowd demands Governor Pontius Pilate Jared Polis release Rogel, ca. 2021, colorized.

 

[Derec]

At his age, he could not have been a very experienced rig driver. And who knows how one will behave in an emergency.

No matter how inexperienced, he acted completely recklessly. Even the people behind him on the road knew he should have taken that off-ramp. So what's his excuse?

He may not have seen the runoff in time or may not have thought he could effect the maneuver. Or he may have simply panicked.

There was a big-ass sign saying "runaway truck ramp 2000 ft". He had plenty of time to react. Also, there is no indication that the maneuver to gently veer right onto the ramp could not be effected. Have you even watched the video? Instead of going right, he swerves left across lanes, almost collecting a white pickup truck in the process.

Maybe you’ve never made a driving error. I have and I’m grateful no one was hurt.

I am not a professional driver, but no. Nothing like this. And I always downshift on long grades.

 

[Toni]

At his age, he could not have been a very experienced rig driver. And who knows how one will behave in an emergency.

No matter how inexperienced, he acted completely recklessly. Even the people behind him on the road knew he should have taken that off-ramp. So what's his excuse?

He may not have seen the runoff in time or may not have thought he could effect the maneuver. Or he may have simply panicked.

There was a big-ass sign saying "runaway truck ramp 2000 ft". He had plenty of time to react. Also, there is no indication that the maneuver to gently veer right onto the ramp could not be effected. Have you even watched the video? Instead of going right, he swerves left across lanes, almost collecting a white pickup truck in the process.

Maybe you’ve never made a driving error. I have and I’m grateful no one was hurt.

I am not a professional driver, but no. Nothing like this. And I always downshift on long grades.

I’m just saying that it easy to see what someone else should have done. It’s harder in that moment. No one was in the cab with him. I don’t believe that there was any evidence that he was distracted by his phone, or under the influence of any substance or sleep deprived. He made a terrible error. It cost people lives and grace injuries. He does deserve to pay for such a terrible error but 110 years is excessive.

 

[laughing dog]

At his age, he could not have been a very experienced rig driver. And who knows how one will behave in an emergency.

No matter how inexperienced, he acted completely recklessly. Even the people behind him on the road knew he should have taken that off-ramp. So what's his excuse?

He may not have seen the runoff in time or may not have thought he could effect the maneuver. Or he may have simply panicked.

There was a big-ass sign saying "runaway truck ramp 2000 ft". He had plenty of time to react. Also, there is no indication that the maneuver to gently veer right onto the ramp could not be effected. Have you even watched the video? Instead of going right, he swerves left across lanes, almost collecting a white pickup truck in the process.

Maybe you’ve never made a driving error. I have and I’m grateful no one was hurt.

I am not a professional driver, but no. Nothing like this. And I always downshift on long grades.

I’m just saying that it easy to see what someone else should have done. It’s harder in that moment. No one was in the cab with him. I don’t believe that there was any evidence that he was distracted by his phone, or under the influence of any substance or sleep deprived. He made a terrible error. It cost people lives and grace injuries. He does deserve to pay for such a terrible error but 110 years is excessive.

Don't you find it a bit fascinating that someone can argue that this Hispanic driver deserves a 110 year sentence for making a deadly split second mistake, but that a white police officer who also makes a deadly split second mistake deserves no conviction or sentence?

 

[TomC]

I don't think anyone is saying the conviction isn't appropriate. It's the sentencing that is wildly out of whack.

Exactly this.

He was operating a multi-ton missile under dangerous circumstances. His lack of judgment caused a gigantic disaster, which was avoidable.

But a 110 year sentence won't fix any vehicles or heal broken bones, much less bring back the dead loved ones. It looks entirely like a combination of naked vengeance and political opportunism to me.

As a hardcore Prolifer, I cannot find that morally acceptable. Life is more than mere survival. It's about treating people, with inherent worth and dignity, as people. The conviction is the correct response. The sentence is ridiculous.

Tom

It's less a matter of vengeance and political opportunism and more a matter of what happens under mandatory sentencing, which is how he ended up with a 110 year sentence.

This is the kind of detail that leaves me unwilling to hold a firm opinion, in more than a broad brushstrokes sort of way.
Someone else mentioned "plea deals". Did he choose against a reasonable outcome, leaving him risking this massively disproportionate sentence? I dunno. If he did, did he have a good lawyer? Capable of getting across to him the chance he was taking by turning down a 5 year sentence plea deal? I dunno. Did the prosecutor have an election coming up, and wanted a "tough on crime, especially those Hispanics" scalp on his belt? I dunno.

To many important details to form a firm opinion, about this particular event, if you don't trust the media to be accurate, precise, and complete. Which I do not.
Tom

 

[Toni]

I don't think anyone is saying the conviction isn't appropriate. It's the sentencing that is wildly out of whack.

Exactly this.

He was operating a multi-ton missile under dangerous circumstances. His lack of judgment caused a gigantic disaster, which was avoidable.

But a 110 year sentence won't fix any vehicles or heal broken bones, much less bring back the dead loved ones. It looks entirely like a combination of naked vengeance and political opportunism to me.

As a hardcore Prolifer, I cannot find that morally acceptable. Life is more than mere survival. It's about treating people, with inherent worth and dignity, as people. The conviction is the correct response. The sentence is ridiculous.

Tom

It's less a matter of vengeance and political opportunism and more a matter of what happens under mandatory sentencing, which is how he ended up with a 110 year sentence.

This is the kind of detail that leaves me unwilling to hold a firm opinion, in more than a broad brushstrokes sort of way.
Someone else mentioned "plea deals". Did he choose against a reasonable outcome, leaving him risking this massively disproportionate sentence? I dunno. If he did, did he have a good lawyer? Capable of getting across to him the chance he was taking by turning down a 5 year sentence plea deal? I dunno. Did the prosecutor have an election coming up, and wanted a "tough on crime, especially those Hispanics" scalp on his belt? I dunno.

To many important details to form a firm opinion, about this particular event, if you don't trust the media to be accurate, precise, and complete. Which I do not.
Tom

It was the mandatory sentencing guidelines that got him the 110 year sentence. Every sentence to be served consecutively.

 

[TomC]

It was the mandatory sentencing guidelines that got him the 110 year sentence. Every sentence to be served consecutively.

Possible, but it seems implausible. Was trucker dude never offered a plea deal? A deal that didn't involve a trial and the "mandatory sentencing"?

Maybe so. Doesn't seem reasonable, but maybe so. We do live in a country I consider borderline schizophrenic. Quite capable of believing and acting, as a society, in multiple ways. Ways that are mutually exclusive, but still considered true and crucially important.

We are a nation of immigrants. It made us great.
We must stop immigrants. They don't belong here.

Tom

 

[Derec]

Possible, but it seems implausible. Was trucker dude never offered a plea deal? A deal that didn't involve a trial and the "mandatory sentencing"?

I do not know why you find that implausible. The judge said himself that he was forced by Colorado sentencing rules to impose 110 years because each sentence had to run consecutively and there were a lot of counts.
And yes, he was offered a plea deal and plea deals can circumvent such minimums.
Rogel Aguilera-Mederos Rejected a Plea Deal. So He Got 110 Years in Prison.

I do not agree with this author. If prosecutors could not offer lesser charges/penalties as part of a plea deal hardly anybody would plead guilty.

Maybe so. Doesn't seem reasonable, but maybe so. We do live in a country I consider borderline schizophrenic. Quite capable of believing and acting, as a society, in multiple ways. Ways that are mutually exclusive, but still considered true and crucially important.

???

We are a nation of immigrants. It made us great.
We must stop immigrants. They don't belong here.

Not all immigrants are good. Not all levels of immigration are good. It's not either or.
These absolutist statements about closing US to all immigration on one extreme or open borders on the other are both idiotic. Although I never see the former position in stated seriously, but the latter is very common in certain circles.
And RAM should not get a slap on the wrist just because he is an immigrant either.

 

[Derec]

Someone else mentioned "plea deals". Did he choose against a reasonable outcome, leaving him risking this massively disproportionate sentence?

Yes, he rejected anything bigger than a traffic ticket.

I dunno. If he did, did he have a good lawyer?

The lawyer is good at drumming up public support at least. It's politics at this point, not law.

 

[Derec]

Don't you find it a bit fascinating that someone can argue that this Hispanic driver deserves a 110 year sentence for making a deadly split second mistake,

- His racial and ethnic origin should be irrelevant. Unfortunately his supporters are making a lot out of him being from a Spanish-speaking country.
- It was the very opposite of a split-second decision! He had plenty of time to act. Driving the 2000' between the sign announcing the off-ramp and the off-ramp itself is about 20 seconds driving at 60 mph. And that was only a part of the entire descent to the scene of the accident.

Did you even watch the video or read about the case?

but that a white police officer who also makes a deadly split second mistake deserves no conviction or sentence?

She does not deserve a 1st degree manslaughter conviction or the level of vilification she has received in the media.
Unlike the comparatively luxurious amount of time RAM had to ponder what to do and actually do it (like taking a gentle right onto the off-ramp) Potter really did have to make a split-second decision when St. Daunte decided to rabbit.

 

[Derec]

I’m just saying that it easy to see what someone else should have done. It’s harder in that moment.

Perhaps. He was still a professional truck driver who should have known to do things like take the off-ramp.

No one was in the cab with him. I don’t believe that there was any evidence that he was distracted by his phone, or under the influence of any substance or sleep deprived.

I have seen reports that there was no drugs or alcohol. But I have not seen anything that indicates one way or another about distractions or sleep deprivation.

He made a terrible error. It cost people lives and grace injuries. He does deserve to pay for such a terrible error but 110 years is excessive.

I think everybody here agrees that 110 is excessive. However, "time served" as demanded by his supporters is way too short.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

At his age, he could not have been a very experienced rig driver. And who knows how one will behave in an emergency.

No matter how inexperienced, he acted completely recklessly. Even the people behind him on the road knew he should have taken that off-ramp. So what's his excuse?

He may not have seen the runoff in time or may not have thought he could effect the maneuver. Or he may have simply panicked.

There was a big-ass sign saying "runaway truck ramp 2000 ft". He had plenty of time to react. Also, there is no indication that the maneuver to gently veer right onto the ramp could not be effected. Have you even watched the video? Instead of going right, he swerves left across lanes, almost collecting a white pickup truck in the process.

Maybe you’ve never made a driving error. I have and I’m grateful no one was hurt.

I am not a professional driver, but no. Nothing like this. And I always downshift on long grades.

His swerve to the left shows that he knows he's in trouble--that's the sort of move you pull when you know you're in danger of losing it in the turn.

 

[Loren Pechtel]

Don't you find it a bit fascinating that someone can argue that this Hispanic driver deserves a 110 year sentence for making a deadly split second mistake, but that a white police officer who also makes a deadly split second mistake deserves no conviction or sentence?

This is not a split-second mistake.

 

[TomC]

Don't you find it a bit fascinating that someone can argue that this Hispanic driver deserves a 110 year sentence for making a deadly split second mistake, but that a white police officer who also makes a deadly split second mistake deserves no conviction or sentence?

This is not a split-second mistake.

If it were a split second mistake, like the cops who shot Wright and Adam Toledo, I would have a different opinion about proper sentencing.
But it wasn't.

This deserves real jail time. He had time to really make choices. He had options he chose against. 110 years is ridiculous, but 10(out in 5 for good behavior), seems reasonable.

But, also, he apparently was offered a plea deal and turned it down. Another really bad choice on his part.

He's far more responsible for the outcome, overall, than the cops.
Tom

 

[Derec]

If it were a split second mistake, like the cops who shot Wright and Adam Toledo,

Adam Toledo wasn't even a mistake, except on part of Adam and the adult who gave him the gun.

 

[TomC]

If it were a split second mistake, like the cops who shot Wright and Adam Toledo,

Adam Toledo wasn't even a mistake, except on part of Adam and the adult who gave him the gun.

Totally with ya.

The cop that shot Toledo had .8 seconds to decide why Toledo was raising the gun he'd been shooting with shortly before.

The adult is Ruben Roman, an adult who was out at 2am with a child shooting. He was bailed out the next day because a group of "concerned black citizens" didn't want his involvement to become news. They wanted to keep the focus on the cop.

Not change the subject to young black males corrupting young black males. Keep the media focused on the wypepo. Otherwise, the narrative might shift off of black victimhood.

We can't have that.

Tom

 

[laughing dog]

Don't you find it a bit fascinating that someone can argue that this Hispanic driver deserves a 110 year sentence for making a deadly split second mistake,

- His racial and ethnic origin should be irrelevant. Unfortunately his supporters are making a lot out of him being from a Spanish-speaking country.
- It was the very opposite of a split-second decision! He had plenty of time to act. Driving the 2000' between the sign announcing the off-ramp and the off-ramp itself is about 20 seconds driving at 60 mph. And that was only a part of the entire descent to the scene of the accident.

Did you even watch the video or read about the case?

but that a white police officer who also makes a deadly split second mistake deserves no conviction or sentence?

She does not deserve a 1st degree manslaughter conviction or the level of vilification she has received in the media.
Unlike the comparatively luxurious amount of time RAM had to ponder what to do and actually do it (like taking a gentle right onto the off-ramp) Potter really did have to make a split-second decision when St. Daunte decided to rabbit.

I think replacing “ fascinating” by “ predictable and disappointing “ improves the observation.

 

[SigmatheZeta]

Colorado prosecutor showed off brake-shoe gift after helping convict 26-year-old trucker sentenced to 110 years for deadly crash

A prosecutor who helped convict Rogel Aguilera-Mederos for his role in a deadly 2019 crash posted a photo of a brake shoe she said was a gift.

www.insider.com

After a 26-year-old truck driver received a 110-year prison sentence for his role in a deadly crash, a Colorado prosecutor who helped convict him drew outrage for showing off a brake shoe she was gifted on social media.

Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, a 26-year-old truck driver who said his brakes failed during a 2019 crash that killed four people, was convicted on 27 counts in October. At Aguilera-Mederos' December 13 sentencing, Jefferson County District Judge A. Bruce Jones said state law required the sentences be served consecutively, leading to a 110-year prison term.

Kayla Wildeman, a Jefferson County deputy district attorney, was part of a team of prosecutors that helped convict Aguilera-Mederos. She posted a photo of a brake shoe from a semitrailer and an accompanying plaque on Facebook, according to KUSA, although it's unclear when she posted the photo. Wildeman's social-media pages have since been deactivated.

Wildeman said in her Facebook post that she received the brake shoe as a gift from Jared Maritsky, a fellow deputy district attorney, according to KUSA.

"To make any kind of mockery or behave as if this was a ball game of winning and losing is an outrage," Leonard Martinez, Aguilera-Mederos' attorney, said, as quoted by KMGH. "This was about four people losing their lives and another person facing the prospect of a 110-year prison sentence."

More than 3.7 million people have signed a petition asking Colorado Gov. Jared Polis to commute the sentence or grant Aguilera-Mederos clemency. A spokesperson for Polis previously told Insider's Connor Perrett that, "We are aware of this issue, the Governor and his team review each clemency application individually."

This is a part of the governor's legitimate powers, but it must ultimately be the governor's decision whether or not they think that doing so will insure better behavior from prosecutors in the future. I do not envy governors their positions. These are not easy decisions.

Truckers do not have easy jobs, and I do not envy them their occupations. They are paid inadequately for their labors. Two of them that I know grumble frequently about the negative consequences of deregulation in the 1980's, which really had negative consequences for them. However, the truth is that they are responsible for operating extremely large machines, and I would not want the laws themselves much less severe. Neither would they because they have to share the road with other truckers. If the boy cannot get help from the governor, he does have a right to appeal his case if he thinks he was treated unfairly.

As for the prosecutor, I would warn them that making enemies is not a very good practice for prosecutors. Former Governor of North Carolina Mike Easley made enemies as a prosecutor during his term as a prosecutor, and because of that, a paperwork error turned into a major scandal that upended his existence for several years. While the paperwork error did indeed technically lead to a felony (and his other dealings were neither more nor less shady than any other politician), his enemies were gleeful to turn the matter into grounds to attack him and his entire family. Prosecutors make enough enemies in the legitimate progression of their careers: they should not make a habit of gaining additional ones. If the fallout from this stunt has caused them any serious inconvenience, then it is better for them if they learn their lesson at this stage, rather than later.

 

[TV and credit cards]

There is a “duty to render aid” when you caused the peril.

There is “reasonable care” every person must take in any given circumstances. The law expects us all to act reasonably. In this, the law does not make allowances for level of intelligence (unless the individual is considered disabled), ignorance, or being “panicked”. (Though I can not search “panic defense” without the results attaching “gay” to it. Minus sign be damned.)
When truck driver accepted his license to drive mountainous roads with a full load of lumber, he accepted all the responsibilities that come with it.

Bad laws are enacted by bad politicians who campaign rather than govern. When the ignorant masses call for vengeance, it is the duty of legislators to respond in a reasonable manner.

When a prosecutor with such high responsibility conducts their self in an inappropriate manner, disciplinary action should be taken. Something more than the DA stating that it is “being handled internally”. Her actions speak to her character. I’d like to think her career in the DA office has come to a standstill.