Prosecutor in I-70 Truck Driver Case Brags Online About Brake Trophy

[gldstwmn]

While close to 4.5 million people have signed on to a Change.org petition seeking clemency for truck driver Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, who was recently sentenced in Jefferson County to 110 years in prison, those who prosecuted the case are responding much differently.

"Get yourself a trial partner as great as Trevor Moritzky. He turned a brake shoe from a semi truck into a memento. What a special gift from truly a special person," Kayla Wildeman, a prosecutor with the District Attorney's Office for the First Judicial District who was involved in the case, wrote on Facebook above a photo that shows a brake next to a diploma. "I sure am grateful this trial brought you into my career as both a colleague and a friend! Words will never convey how lucky I am to have gotten the opportunity to learn from you!"

According to the Facebook post, Moritzky, a deputy district attorney in the First Judicial District, gifted colleague Wildeman, also a deputy district attorney, a brake similar to one taken out of the truck that Aguilera-Mederos crashed on I-70 near Colorado Mills Parkway in April 2019.

The crash resulted in four deaths: 24-year-old Denver resident Miguel Angel Lamas Arellano; Doyle Harrison, a 61-year-old from Hudson; 67-year-old Arvadan William Bailey; and Stanley Politano, a 69-year-old who was also from Arva


Prosecutors threw the book at Aguilera-Mederos, who was convicted on 27 out of 41 charges stemming from the crash. The 110-year sentence came as a result of mandatory sentencing rules, which state lawmakers are already talking about reforming, owing to what they see as an egregious over-sentencing of Aguilera-Mederos.

Much of the argument in court revolved around whether Aguilera-Mederos was at fault for a crash that occurred after the brakes on his truck failed.

The brake trophy display on Facebook includes Wildeman's name, the case number and "I-70 Case."

"It is not a piece of evidence from the case. The post was in very poor taste and does not reflect the values of my administration. We have addressed it internally," says Alexis King, district attorney for the First Judicial District. King's predecessor, Peter Weir, was in charge of the office when charges were originally filed against Aguilera-Medero.

Given his judgment in awarding the trophy to a colleague, some members of the legal community wonder if Moritzky was an appropriate candidate for the several vacant district court judge positions in the metro area for which he's been considered.

And the fact that a prosecutor gifted a brake pad to a colleague is evidence of deeper problems among law enforcement officials, according to Andy McNulty, a lawyer with Killmer, Lane & Newman. "It's a grotesque example of the inhumanity of our criminal injustice system. To receive a brake pad as some sort of trophy for sentencing a man to death in prison shows the complete disregard that prosecutors have for the lives they ruin, and how they view their job as some sort of game rather than an obligation to serve justice," McNulty says


The huge sentence given to Aguilera-Mederos, a Cuban immigrant, has drawn the attention of the League of United Latin American Citizens, a Washington, D.C.-based organization that calls itself the "largest and oldest Hispanic organization in the United States." On December 16, LULAC announced that it's "working on registering a formal complaint of gross misconduct with the Colorado Bar Association against First Judicial District Attorney Alexis King for abuse of power and official oppression under the color of law in filing charges against an innocent truck driver who was behind the wheel when his truck’s brakes failed."
(Snip)

[link:http://

Link to tweet

?t=upj-PNPl1KGpjT72edQXXQ&s=19|
https://www.westword.com/news/prosecutor-colorado-aguilera-mederos-truck-driver-tragedy-brake-trophy-13053462

[SheltieLover]

3. Read #2. I've seen several of the videos

This narcissist should rot in prison!

[SheltieLover]

2. This trucker was going 85mph in a 30 mph 6% downgrade BEFORE his brakes failed!

Several folks took videos on their phones before & during the 27-car deadly accident.

Videos show trucker passing on shoulder & running people off the road BEFORE brakes failed.

If you signed the petition, search up & watch videos then decide whether to remove your name!

[sanatanadharma]

4. What you say suggests the brakes had already failed

85 mph, driving on the shoulder, suggests brakes had already faded from heat, overuse (when a lower transmission gear is appropriate).

If the driver had any signs of brake fade before the last safety ramp and passed it by, then diver error is the problem.

[SheltieLover]

8. Nope.

Not what videos & evidence show. THIS is why he was convicted, NOT because his brakes failed.

Pls search up the videos & watch.

Now this guy is playing the race card.

[BlackSkimmer]

10. Where can you see the videos?

[gldstwmn]

14. Here you go

[BlackSkimmer]

15. Oh god, that's so scary.

Just leaving city limits the other day, on a road with another town coming up in 5 minutes, a big truck like that passed me going at least 70. Misty, rainy morning. Frightening.

Thanks for the videos.

[gldstwmn]

5. I'm concerned with the behavior of the prosecutor here.

It's gross. The sentencing issue is a separate story though it is included here for context. Sure they convicted him but they're keeping trophies now? It's ghoulish. They need to think long and hard about allowing these two to continue as prosecutors. There are no winners here. No one deserves a trophy. Jesus.

[SheltieLover]

9. Agreed!

[A HERETIC I AM]

6. He was 23 at the time.

Twenty three. And apparently not long after getting his CDL. He could not possibly have been ready to drive in mountains like the Rockies.

Have you ever driven a tractor trailer? Have you ever driven a heavy vehicle down a 6% grade?

Should he have used the runaway ramp(s) he passed? Of course, but I’m betting he was in full on panic mode and wasn’t thinking clear at all.

I’ve been down that road numerous times and if you are not properly trained or prepared, it is a handful, if not downright hazardous.

That young man had no business being on that road with as little experience as he apparently had, and while the accident was surely tragic, the sentence he was given is more suitable for a murderer, NOT a trucker involved in an accident, even one involving fatalities.

It’s unprecedented and egregious. If you want someone to punish, find the moron that trained him and told management he was good to go. Include the dispatcher that gave an utter rookie a trip over some of the steepest grades on the interstate system with virtually no understanding of what he was getting into.

[Withywindle]

7. +1. The company that pressured him to do this should be held responsible

I'm not saying the driver shouldn't do ANY time, it sounds he made reckless and selfish choices - but there are people who've committed deliberate murder doing less than that.

[SheltieLover]

11. I agree but this is not a conviction on brake failure

Evidence, including videos show he was going 85mph in a 30 mph downgrade BEFORE he knew his beakes failed.

I agree whomever trained, licensed, & hired him for this run should also be prosecuted!

If this were a case of brake failure alone, I would not want him prosecuted at all!

Pls search up the videos & watch them.

No, I haven never driven a truck larger than 26' & have never driven that route.

I do have a tremendous amount of respect for truckers. Many other truckers made videos about this man's behavior saying he got what he deserved for traveling nearly 3 times the speed limit on this trecherous route BEFORE he knew his brakes failed.

This is why he was convicted.

[A HERETIC I AM]

16. Where is the evidence indicating he was running that fast before he knew his brakes had failed.

Because I would be interested in seeing it and it certainly would temper my opinion.

If you’re familiar with I-70 west of Denver, and provided he started on 70 back in Utah, there is another high pass he traveled: Vail Pass, and while not nearly as long or steep running East (it is 7 miles of 7% running West) it’s possible his brakes had lost most of their effectiveness by the time he entered the Eisenhower Tunnel at the very top.

It’s a long way down, but it is not a constant grade. There are uphill sections before you get to the final 7% stretch leading into the outskirts of Denver.


This is one of the videos taken by a driver following the truck as it passes a runaway ramp. Note the trailer wheels are NOT showing any signs of heavy smoke, which would indicate he had been hard on his brakes. The lack of smoke at this point suggests to me that the trailer brakes were so out of adjustment or in need of replacement, that they were completely ineffective.

One of the related stories from a Denver news stations said in the past, the company has had units placed out of service by DOT inspectors for bad brakes. It also mentioned this young man had difficulty with the English Language. Again, I blame the people who rode with him and trained him and signed off on his abilities when they were clearly lacking. Also, the company is based in Houston, which is not exactly mountainous countryside.

This was a tragic, horrific crash, of that there is no doubt. I do believe the driver should be punished, but I have a modicum of sympathy for young drivers, not properly trained, given faulty equipment.

I well remember when I started over the road driving, how utterly terrified I was of having a runaway. But I sought out and got some very good advice from a few old hands and while I have had some hot brakes in the past, I have learned how to avoid that situation entirely. Provided the tractor is equipped with an engine retarder, I can go down the longest, steepest grade in the country and you could disassemble the brakes at the bottom with your bare hands. Without the retarder, you might want some gloves, but they wont be smoking.

But that sort of thing comes with experience, something this young man clearly had too little of.

I still contend the sentence far outweighs any reasonable punishment for this crime.

[SheltieLover]

21. Looking for links for you

What I'd seen is that he had said he did not use runaway ramps visible in videos long before the crash because he didn't know his brakes were malfunctioning, seeming to mean hehadn't even tried to slow down.

I'll bb when I find links for you.

[A HERETIC I AM]

23. I think it is possible he didn't use the runaway ramps...

Because he had no idea what they were for.

Again, It seems to me this guy was a total rookie, had poor English skills, was way out of his depth and had no idea that he was supposed to put his truck into the ramp if he couldn’t keep the speed under control.

I find it very hard to believe he was deliberately doing 85 down that grade because he thought that’s what he was supposed to do.

Instead, I see an absolutely terrified driver who had no idea what he was supposed to do.

By the way, let’s for a minute assume this guy started his trip in Houston, went to LA for his delivery and re-load, then up I-15 to 70 and then east.

If he stayed on I-10 to his destination, then headed north and east as I mentioned, in all those miles he would have seen exactly TWO runaway ramps on his side of the road: One on I-15 in California headed toward the Nevada line and the one the videos show him driving past. There are none on I-10 - not a single one from Jacksonville FL. to Santa Monica and the one he is shown driving past is at the 256 MM on 70.

I think it is possible he had no idea what they were for.

[gldstwmn]

13. I agree.

I have driven that stretch of I 70 many times. You crest the hill and at night you can see the lights of the city stretched out below. From the video he looks to be in trouble at the top of the hill passing the first runaway truck ramp.
I have seen many trucks pulled off to the side at the bottom of the hill with the smell of burning brakes preceding them.
He was convicted on 27 of 41 charges. If that isn't overcharging someone I don't know what the hell is. The judge even said he wished he could have given a lighter sentence.

[gldstwmn]

12. This is the same prosecutor who

was responsible for this:

Link to tweet

?t=dwkYzYbPPmnNnW6Dh6meAA&s=19

Link to tweet

?t=-1CqoqEUSWM2tSxU83Jj4w&s=19

[A HERETIC I AM]

17. Fucking scumbag.

How some of these prosecutors get their jobs and are able to keep them is a mystery to me.

[gldstwmn]

19. He'll take care of you if you're a football coach too:

Link to tweet

?t=1DoI46Ecy3pC9S_Cn_Bhiw&s=19

Link to tweet

?t=83XZjalUtfHIoOIfvQAx8w&s=19

But if you're a poor immigrant forget it.

[Emile]

18. Equipment failure. Was the truck properly maintained by the company? Rittenhouse

shoots 3 people, one in the back and walks free. Justice in America!

[gldstwmn]

20. The trucking company went out of business.

I'm not sure what, if any culpability was assigned to them in the criminal trial.

[Brainfodder]

22. Lawyers just continue to prove the stereotype?

It's a big kettle and some will be bad apples, like any other profession?

Assholes like these need punished and removed from duty, nothing else will do if you want change, and we all know apathy for others is clearing missing in many, just seems a coincidence that it is people with very good jobs or already set in life?

[gldstwmn]

24. To that end the DA in Jefferson County, Alexis King also decided not to press charges against a

Police officer who killed a good Samaritan last spring. The investigation was completely swept under the rug and the officer's name wasn't even released until after she decided not to press charges. The video footage was never released. She ran on a progressive reform platform but I've seen little if nothing of that from her. Here's a link to that story:

No Charges To Be Filed Against Arvada Police Officer Who Shot Johnny Hurley
ARVADA, Colo. (CBS4) – The First Judicial District Attorney, Alexis King, will not charge a police officer in the deadly shooting of a hero. Arvada police officer Gordon Beesley and citizen Johnny Hurley were both shot and killed.

https://denver.cbslocal.com/2021/11/08/no-charges-arvada-police-district-attorney/