Clemency petition for truck driver who killed four after brakes failed gets 2.5m signatures

'Rogel is not a criminal, the company he was working for knew the federal laws that go into truck driving but they failed to follow those laws'

A petition to grant clemency to the truck driver who killed four after his breaks failed on a Colorado interstate has gained 2.5 million signatures since its launch. Back in 2019, 26-year-old Rogel Aguilera-Mederos crashed into two dozen vehicles, creating what the Mail Online dubbed as a "fireball explosion" that killed four people. On Monday, Aguilera-Mederos was sentenced to 110 consecutive years in prison by county court Judge A. Bruce Jones. Jones said that mandatory minimums of state laws bound his hands. "Rogel Lazaro Aguilera-Mederos, 23 has nothing on his driving record, or on his criminal history," the start of the petition reads. It continues to say that he had complied with every manner of the investigation and he had passed all drug and alcohol-related tests. It continues: "The trucking company has had several inspections since 2017, with several mechanical violations. There are many things Rogel could have done to avoid the courts, but he took responsibility showed up and severely apologized to the victims families. "Rogel is not a criminal, the company he was working for knew the federal laws that go into truck driving but they failed to follow those laws." It continues: "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 wasnt a criminal act, it was an accident." While six people were taken to the hospital for treatment, four people sadly died. Posted on Change.org, the petition is on track to become the platform's most signed campaign once it surpasses three million names. The site has a track record for encouraging those in power to change or overturn convictions too, having previously forced companies AT&T, Ernst & Young, Intel, and UPS to stop donating money to the Boy Scouts in light of its controversial exclusionary policy against gay scouts and leaders.

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