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1.36.2.22
OR Until Rogel Is Free... Millions of people have signed a petition asking Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D) for a then-23-year-old truck driver's 110-year prison sentence to be reduced and to grant the driver "clemency or commutation-as time served." Signers have pointed out that the driver, Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, had nothing on his driving record and no criminal history."This accident was not intentional, nor was it a criminal act on the drivers (sic) part. No one but the trucking company he is/was employed by should be held accountable for this accident," the petition said.
Aguilera-Mederos had crashed and killed four people in 2019 after his brakes malfunctioned, though prosecutors argued he should have still steered out of the way to a runaway ramp.
This case is causing outrage among truck drivers. Three days ago drivers across the country organized a large protest in solidarity with Aguilera-Mederos called #NoTrucksToColorado. As a result of the protest, drivers have refused to offload goods in Colorado. #NoJusticeNoTrucks
So far, more than 4 million people have signed a petition on Change.org asking for "commutation as time served, or grant clemency."
At the same time, many people are calling attention to how differently this case has been treated compared to Ethan Couch, a rich white teen from Texas, known as the "affluenza teen." Couch was sentenced to probation after driving drunk and killing four people.
As the petition says, "no one but the trucking company he is/was employed by should be held accountable for this accident." https://www.facebook.com/hashtag/breaking
Rich White kid only got probation! Brown kid gets 110 years for an accident.
Rolls eyes.
Edits: 12/21/21Follow Ups:
You would think the people running the company should get jail time with their track record of violations and hiring people who can't read English road signs.
But no - they'll pay some fine and the CEO will continue to drive their Porsche and ride in their yacht and live in their multiple mansions and keep doing what they're doing.
Here is a little run down of the company's track record.
d
Only 8 years but still an outrage for a grad student who wasn't properly trained by the company he worked for. No way a white driver would get this.
It's the State of Colorado's fault for allowing too many drivers on the major highways at one time. The traffic congestion on some highways is unconscionable, not to mention deadly dangerous.
Lock 'em ALL up, I say !!!
Here in the US, the punishment is inversely proportional to the amount of the paycheck.
The problem is not that there is evil in the world, the problem is that there is good. Because otherwise, who would care?
Edits: 12/22/21
27 vehicles damaged or destroyed.
Originally charged with 41 counts. Found guilty of 27.
4 counts of vehicular homicide,
6 counts of first-degree assault,
10 counts of attempt to commit assault in the first degree- extreme indifference,
2 counts of vehicular assault- reckless,
1 count of reckless driving,
4 counts of careless driving causing death.
Maybe?
Hard to argue the 'runaway' truck defense as he was accused of passing a runaway truck ramp.
Unless he was going the other way?
But we know what's going on here.
Try again.
Even the DA and the victim's families don't think he should have gotten this sentence - nor the judge apparently.
to recap: multiple charges were filed, allowed, then successfully prosecuted
the state's sentencing guidelines required the verdict
since there's an avenue for appeal that's being looked at
so in this instance the system is working
end of story? or should the DA's office be reviewed and reprimanded for overzealous prosecution? because there is such a thing even if it's rarely invoked
I'll tell you though, that behavior is fairly routine, but usually in proximity to local elections where candidates need 'tough on crime' on their record of office for their campaign planks
there's a lot of bad shit in this story though and many more like them
I wrote the above in deference to you RGA but I still want to know why [and how] this captured your attention and energy?
regards,
The Term, IIRC, is 'Over Charge'.
Guy commits a crime and you charge with EVERYTHING possible including the parking offense while in commission OF said crime....
throw enought mud and some will stick.
In this case? Nearly ALL the mud stuck and resonated with the Jury....
I'd like to know more of the 'WHY' behind the convicted persons actions. Sounds like somebody went completely Haywire.....
Too much is never enough
it's as Ivan said
a runaway truck took down an Illinois governor in days gone by you know
when someone is licensed to pilot 80K pounds down roads at speed they're trained to take the path of least harm if they can't control it for whatever reason; mechanical failure, weather, personal medical emergencies, whatever ... that 'least harm' may include grave personal sacrifices including death
from all that I can gather, this fellow barrelled past his best chance of taking the correct path out of fear and placing self interest above all else ... as his tractor and load went out of control he basically attempted to 'scrub' speed off his downhill acceleration using the occupied vehicles in the traffic jam that he was SPEEDING towards
some of the evidence included his totally incompetent attempts to slow through down shifting because he feared wagging the load over the roadside rail which could have pulled the rig over the side
yeah ... when that scenario went down he seemed determined to not go down with it so that stuff was broken and destroyed and lives were lost or changed forever ... he looked to be in pretty good shape though!
regards,
I just WISH my brother were still alive.
He was a Long Haul trucker, driving instructor and worked the recovery / insurance end of the industry for 2+ decades that I KNOW of.
He'd be able to make sense of this in an understandable way......
IF this guy DID pass up one of those 'escape' routes? VERY VERY bad, indeed.
Sometimes stuff happens....My brother felt a vibration in his truck where he couldnt' easily stop....
When he COULD pull over? He was missing a WHEEL which was ????? but gone......
Potentially deadly. A couple hundred pounds of wheel / tire coming thru your front windshiled will ruin your day.
I'll do some more reading......
Too much is never enough
I'm sorry for your loss whether or not it was sudden or expected
yes indeed, there's things beyond the operators control, shit happens
it did come out in this case that the driver's first best decision should have been a controlled crash but he crossed his fingers and tried to ride it out then panicked ... big time ... so he not only lost control of the rig, but himself ... I think this accounts for the pile on of charges, it pissed everyone off!
Thank you for your good offices.
My poor brother had a pretty rough last decade or so. I won't go into detail, but WILL say that the VA Hospital system took pretty good care of him. I saw the facility and it was TOPS with a wonderful cast of characters from top to bottom.....And built using an old 'fort' as the core......I wont' even say WHERE.My brothers CHIEF complaint was drivers of passanger cars doing Unexpected or near-random stuff.
I don't think that mischaracterizes his view. He was accident free for who knows how many miles.
He drove for 2 majors you see on the road.....over his career. I won't mention names....I rode with him in his personal vehicles and he was ALWAYS looking ahead / around / behind and had good situaitonal awareness...His last personal BIO truck was an F350 Diesel. WOW, what a beast with the useful Remote Start good on cold days to get things moving before needed......
But I much preferred his Diesel Toyota. I think it was an FJ40 or F40 and had the 3.0 HINO diesel.....Easy to get parts for since the engine lives on powering REEFERS on big rigs....And UNSTOPPABLE.He was a safety guy for a smaller concern and walked into a Hornets Next of DOT stuff, including a driver who ignored safety protocols and got a FACE FULL of sulferic acid.
Too much is never enough
Edits: 12/22/21
I was a road warrior repping for a finance company for years
we're talking a few thousand miles / month throughout the midwest / northern states with all sorts of 'wonderful' weather, road conditions, rural, suburban, and urban driving so I've seen it all except aircraft landing on roads
we underwent the same driving courses state police are required to pass
except the high speed stuff ... that wasn't allowed by the insurance co's
can't say I blame them ... anyway, I totally concur with what your bro said except I've seen extremely bad decisions / driving from the big rig operators as well ... alarmingly commonplace too!
it is somewhat of an art to do safely for any length of time I tell ya!
My brother was in recruiting.
They'd get him a HOTEL ROOM and advertise.
On the appointed day? He took applications and chatted up the prospective employees.
Than he'd toss all the apps into an envelope and ship 'em off.....than ON to his next stop.
In that fashion? He accumulated enough Frequent Flier Miles for a free ticket to MARS.
Once when he was training drivers? His 'trainee' cut a turn short and ripped a road sign for a restaurant OUT AT THE ROOTS while damaging the trailer. OUCH!
Some of the bad decisions I HEARD about, involved stealing trucks and trailers full of stuff......And finding the truck somewhere having been lived in for a month......
Too much is never enough
well I'm going to have a drink tonight celebrating your memories of him
for real
salute!
best regards,
I've got some Glenmorangie The LaSanta to try......
Too much is never enough
Glen Moray Elgin Classic inna clay cup!
!!! here's to those still here and those we hold dear !!!
*salute*
*salute* !!
[sorry* ... big cup!]
or it was just a runaway truck with failed brakes.
You still have those thick gravel run-offs which tip UP to soak off kinetic energy.
Failed brakes? IF AVAILABLE? Aim for one of those ramps.....
Too much is never enough
The law prescribes mandatory sentences for violent crimes. Violent crimes were charged, and he was found guilty by the jury. The prosecutor said she tried to get the defendant to lesser counts and agree to a shorter sentence but he refused. Where was his lawyer? Who knows.
Someone below, who I bet never drove that kind of rig, said the driver passed a runaway truck ramp he could easily have used. I don't know how easy that would be, in a panic, fearful of flipping the trailer. And that's maybe the underlying issue. Have you heard about the shortage of truck drivers in the country?
When I was the driver's age, I held a New Mexico Chauffeurs license that gave me the right to drive any kind of vehicle on any highway in the United States. Never mind that I knew nothing about driving big trucks. I was offered a job driving a truck for a circus operated by a family friend. I declined. One of the many choices I made during my youth that avoided incarceration. Who knows how many peoples lives were saved.
The trucking company might be a Mom n Pop struggling to find drivers and unable to actually train them. I really don't know anything about the subject, but I hope that truckers are licensed and required to employ drivers who pass a training course. I hope.
Easy to blame someone. How about us? Stop buying so much crap that later ends up in landfills. Reduce the need for trucking.
I should try for a Chauffeurs license?
Certainly easier to get just about any license in New Mexico, compared to California.
The fact that the driver was accused of passing a 'runaway truck' ramp is ample evidence that he was indeed guilty of nothing more that driving a truck with faulty brakes.
Perhaps 110 years is what they should have given the owner of the truck with the faulty brakes?
Nt
Mark in NC
"The thought that life could be better is woven indelibly into our hearts and our brains" -Paul Simon
He was weaving across curvy lanes of freeway traffic racing downhill at high speed with opportunity to exit at a runaway trunk ramp. But he didn't. He caused a fireball explosion on the freeway closing off all lanes and killing four innocent people.
Yes, 110 years is way too much but he was clearly at fault. There are cellphone videos of him passing a runaway truck ramp that he could have easily taken.
Apparently the Colorado law allows the judge to adjust it after 119 days. This is a process and I kind of like it.
Lets hope the judge significantly reduces his sentence. I think part of the process involves speaking with the victims families.
Sure and I've read at least some of the victims family think it's ridiculous that the drivers family could lose their father for life.
ramp.RUNAWAY!
TRUCK!
If he were white he would not be in jail.
Edits: 12/21/21
,
"If he were white he would not be in jail."
We don't know that for fact. The fact is, he is at fault. But I completely agree that 110 years is crazy!
How experienced a driver was this guy - said he was 23. What is the training like for these drivers? How overworked are they? I knew a driver who said they are supposed to drive a certain number of hours by law but most of them go way over those hours due to company demands.
I think the telling aspect is the drunk driver who also killed 4 people got nothing. He was a rich white kid.
Something is seriously wrong with the legal system.
Perhaps the criminals should all wear a burqa and go into court named Joe Smith so that the jury and judge never know what colour the defendant or background the defendant is and all assumed to be a white person.
Nt.
Mark in NC
"The thought that life could be better is woven indelibly into our hearts and our brains" -Paul Simon
another good case for 'moral inversion'......
I MUST in all honesty retract some of this. I've just see a list of the charges and they are pretty bad.
Even though I suspect 'over charging' to make sure SOME stuck.I want to know more about state of mind and 'why'......
Too much is never enough
Edits: 12/21/21
Guess that's just how America rolls these days.
And in days past, to be honest.
But it's against the law, in many states, to talk of, or certainly teach, what went on in those days past.
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