Colorado Governor Jared Polis is being urged to intervene in the case of truck driver Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, who was sentenced to 110 years in prison earlier this month.
In April 2019, four people lost their lives after Aguilera-Mederos' truck plowed into a line of vehicles near Denver, CBS News reports. Earlier this month, a jury found Aguilera-Mederos guilty on four counts of vehicular homicide and 23 other charges related to the accident.
Per CBS Denver, Aguilera-Mederos says his truck lost its brakes while he was driving eastbound on the I-70 in Lakewood. The truck driver crashed into several cars, sparking a huge fire. Ultimately, the tragic crash killed 24-year-old Miguel Angel Lamas Arellano, 67-year-old William Bailey; 61-year-old Doyle Harrison, and 69-year-old Stanley Politano.
No drugs or alcohol were involved in the incident, Lakewood Police Department has said.
More on this story in the video below:Amid his trial, Aguilera-Mederos said that he "cries all the time" when remembering the incident, and that he did his best to avoid other vehicles. Prosecutors argued that he made a series of poor decisions, such as potentially missing a runaway truck ramp along the highway.
Colorado state law requires that all of Aguilera-Mederos' sentences must be served consecutively. Despite receiving all the minimum sentences, they totaled 110 years - a length even the judge voiced his objection to.
"If I had the discretion, it would not be my sentence," the judge said, despite admitting that the truck driver made "reckless decisions".
In response to the sentencing, over 4.6 million people have signed a Change.org petition calling for Governor Polis to grant clemency to Aguilera-Mederos or commutation for time served.
The Petition insists: "We are not trying to make it seem any less of a tragic accident that it is because yes, lives were lost."
It adds: "Rogel has said several times that he wishes he had the courage to crash and take his own life that day, this tragic accident wasn’t done with Intent, it wasn't a criminal act, it was an accident."
The sentence has even come under scrutiny from celebrities, such as law student Kim Kardashian West, who tweeted on Tuesday: "I pray that Governor Polis, who has been a leader on supporting reforms that increase human dignity in the legal system, will commute his sentence."
In response to the sentencing backland, Gage Evans - the wife of crash victim Bailey - said that sentencing laws should be reviewed, but she believes the sentence should not be commuted.
"[Aguilera-Mederos] was found guilty of reckless behavior that killed my husband that was the most important thing to me," she said.
NBC News has since reported that Colorado district attorney Alexis King has filed a motion for a hearing to reconsider the sentence under the state's mandatory minimum law.
A spokesperson for Governor Polis told CBS News: "The Governor and his team review each clemency application individually."
