Gov. Polis Reduces Trucker's 110-Year Sentence To 10 Years

DENVER, CO — Gov. Jared Polis reduced on Thursday the sentence for a semi-truck driver who caused an explosive crash that killed four people on Interstate 70 in 2019.

Rogel Aguilera-Mederos was granted commutation and his sentence has been reduced from 110 years to 10 years.

After the sentencing Dec. 13, millions of people signed an online petition asking Polis to grant clemency to Aguilera-Mederos. His lawyer then turned in a clemency application to the governor's office.

“From the beginning, we have followed the process set forth in the law to reach a just resolution of this case," said 1st Judicial District Attorney Alexis King, in a statement. "We are disappointed in the Governor's decision to act prematurely. I joined the surviving victims and families of those who lost their loved ones in their wish to have the trial judge determine an appropriate sentence in this case, as he heard the facts and evidence of the defendant's destructive conduct that led to death, injury, and devastating destruction.

"We are meeting with the victims and their loved ones this evening to support them in navigating this unprecedented action and to ensure they are treated with fairness, dignity, and respect during this difficult time. We look forward to sharing more information with our community that we were ethically prohibited from releasing while the case was pending."

Aguilera-Mederos was driving the truck, a flatbed loaded with lumber, around 85 miles per hour eastbound down I-70, bypassing several emergency truck pull-off areas, police said. He then crashed into vehicles that were backed up after another crash on the highway, prosecutors said.

The fiery crash damaged the highway and kept the road closed for more than 24 hours. Aguilera-Mederos told police that the brakes on his truck failed and he feared rolling his semitrailer, so he didn't pull off the highway.

The victims of the crash were identified as William Bailey, 67, of Arvada; Doyle Harrison, 61, of Hudson; Miguel Angel Lamas Arellano, 24, of Denver; and Stanley Politano, 69, of Arvada.

"It's been difficult, sometimes it feels like being half a person," said Kathleen Harrison, who lost her husband Harrison in the crash. She offered her statement during the sentencing.

In October, Aguilera-Mederos was found guilty by jury on 27 counts, including vehicular manslaughter, vehicular assault, first-degree assault, first-degree attempt to commit assault, reckless driving and careless driving. He was also found not guilty on 15 counts of first-degree attempt to commit assault.

During testimony, Aguilera-Mederos's defense argued that the brakes on his truck were faulty, while prosecutors argued that the driver made a series of bad choices leading to the crash, including not using a runaway truck ramp to the highway.

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