In the wake of a fiery truck accident that killed four people, Colorado trucking laws took over the headlines, prompting nationwide discussion about truck carrier accountability and mandatory minimum sentencing laws.
In the late afternoon of April 25, 2019, a semi-trailer truck’s brakes failed on Interstate 70 (I-70) near Lakewood, Colorado. The resulting truck crash killed four people, sent six additional people to the hospital with injuries, and caused less catastrophic injuries for many others, as nearly 30 cars were affected by the crash.
The driver, 26-year-old Rogel Lazaro Aguilera-Mederos, sustained no injuries. It was later found that the truck driver had less than a year of driving experience.
Aguilera-Mederos was criminally charged for the crash. In October 2021, he was found guilty of four counts of vehicular homicide and 23 other charges after the incident, and sentenced to 110 years in prison. The judge for the case was forced to give the 110-year prison sentence because of state sentencing guidelines; following a national outcry for leniency, and a petition with over five million signatures, Colorado Governor Jared Polis later commuted Aguilera-Mederos’ sentence to ten years.
The Rogel Aguilera-Mederos crash underscored the importance of topics like proper truck maintenance, carrier/shipper overloading, “chameleon carriers” and truck driver training. Most critically, the 2019 Colorado truck crash shed light on many systemic problems within the trucking industry.
As a Colorado trucking law firm, we still get a lot of questions about this case: who was involved, what happened and how it changed the landscape of Colorado trucking law. Below you will find some of the most frequently asked questions about the 2019 Aguilera-Mederos trucking tragedy.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Aguilera-Mederos truck accident of 2019
What caused the truck accident in Colorado?
Before the crash that made national headlines, there was a precursor crash that made the situation much worse. At about 4 PM that afternoon, an unrelated semi-trailer truck careened into a school bus on I-70, resulting in several injuries. I-70 was closed to eastbound traffic shortly after, which caused heavy backups. Within 30 minutes, all but one lane remained closed, and most traffic was fully stopped.
At that time, Rogel Aguilera-Mederos was driving down I-70 in a semi truck when his brakes failed. He attempted to move his truck to the right shoulder, but swerved back into traffic because another semi-trailer truck was occupying the right shoulder lane already. He careened into stopped traffic, crashing his semi-trailer truck into three other big rigs, as well as twelve passenger vehicles.
At the time of the accident, Aguilera-Mederos was hauling lumber, which quickly became fuel for a massive gasoline fire. Another truck impacted by the crash was carrying Beautyrest mattresses, which further added to the conflagration. It took first responders over five hours to get the fire under control; a portion of I-70 remained closed for about 26 hours.
According to prosecutors, Aguilera-Mederos had checked his brakes before the crash and decided that the truck was safe to use. The defendant sped past at least one runaway truck ramp before colliding into traffic; Lakewood Police Department reported that his truck had reached speeds approaching 100 miles an hour. Aguilera-Mederos’ defense argued that the brakes were already bad, and that he should not be blamed for using faulty equipment.
What charges did the Colorado truck driver get?
At the height of the investigation, Aguilera-Mederos was being considered for 40 different charges. Originally, Aguilera-Mederos was under investigation for vehicular manslaughter; on May 3, 2019, those charges were revised to include six counts of first degree assault and 24 counts of attempted first degree assault.
Aguilera-Mederos claimed that his brakes failed; the ensuing investigation proved inconclusive, as the truck was fully destroyed in the wreck. Accounting for that uncertainty, the jury found Aguilera-Mederos guilty of four counts of vehicular homicide as well as 23 other charges. The vehicular homicide counts were for each of the four people who died in the crash: Doyle Harrison, 61; William Bailey, 67; Stanley Politano, 69; and Miguel Lamas Arrellano, 24. All four people were Colorado residents.
Why was the truck driver sentenced to 110 years?
Mandatory minimum sentencing laws in the state of Colorado dictated Aguilera-Mederos’ original sentence. Sentencing judge A. Bruce Jones stated that he believed Aguilera-Mederos had no ill intent, but the law did not offer him discretion to set a shorter term, as this was the statutory minimum. Jones stated that he did not agree with the sentence, but that it was out of his hands. The Aguilera-Mederos sentence sparked a national discussion about mandatory minimum sentencing laws.
Why were trucks not delivering to Colorado?
The backlash against the 110-year prison sentence was strong and swift, particularly among truck drivers. In December 2021, the Deseret News reported a widespread boycott among truck drivers delivering to the state; according to several reports, many trucks stopped delivering to Colorado. Lines of trucks refusing to cross state lines began popping up in pictures on social media under the hashtag #NoTrucksToColorado.
As a TikToker posting from the handle @realtortrucker phrased it: “This truck is no longer going to Colorado. We want justice for Rogel Aguilera. Truckers (sic) he needs our help.” Another industry website, The Trucker, reports several truckers following suit, including Twitter user @AOrtega_80: “[We] have decided that we (Brown Eagle LLC) have joined the protest and are not getting any loads out of or to Colorado until Rogel gets justice cause 110 years is ridiculous. The company should be held accountable!”
Why did Governor Polis commute the truck driver’s 110-year sentence?
In the wake of the sentencing, social media became flooded with calls for clemency. A Change.org petition for Aguilera-Mederos became the platform’s fastest-growing campaign of the year; multiple celebrities, including Kim Kardashian, went on record to express their support for a commuted sentence. More than five million people signed an online petition demanding clemency for the driver.
On December 30, 2021, Colorado Governor Jared Polis commuted Aguilera-Mederos’ 110-year sentence to ten years. “The length of your 110-year sentence is simply not commensurate with your actions, nor with penalties handed down to others for similar crimes,” Polis wrote in his letter of clemency. “There is an urgency to remedy this unjust sentence and restore confidence in the uniformity and fairness of our criminal justice system, and consequently I have chosen to commute your sentence now.” Aguilera-Mederos will be eligible for parole in five years (Dec. 30, 2026).
What company did the Colorado truck driver work for?
Aguilera-Mederos worked for Castellano 03 Trucking LLC, a carrier that had received 30 safety violations in the two years leading up to the crash. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Association (FMCSA), Castellano 03 Trucking LLC had nearly two dozen vehicle inspections over the past two years, during which inspectors found multiple violations.
Of the 23 vehicle maintenance violations received, ten involved braking issues. Castellano 03 Trucking drivers received several notices for chafing or kinking brake tubes, as well as having brakes out of adjustment. Three drivers’ automatic air brake systems were misadjusted, which failed to compensate for normal wear.
While Castellano 03 Trucking dissolved months after the crash, a new trucking company, Volt Trucking LLC, is now registered at the same Texas address (this reincarnation is called a “chameleon carrier”). According to Newsweek, Volt Trucking LLC has already been linked to at least 23 violations, including “Inoperative/defective brakes” and “Brake connections with leaks or constrictions.” Records show violations for “Brake connections with Constrictions Under Vehicle,” “Brake Connections with Leaks – Connection to Power Unit,” “Clamp or Roto type brake out-of-adjustment,” and “No or defective brake warning device or pressure gauge,” among others.
What is a “chameleon carrier”?
The FMCSA defines the term chameleon carrier as: “a motor carrier that has registered and been operating illegally in interstate commerce by using a new identity in an effort to disguise its former identity and evade enforcement actions issued against it by FMCSA.” The Government Accountability Office reports that chameleon carriers are involved in about 18% of all crashes: nearly three times the average for new applicants.
Also known as “reincarnated carriers”, chameleon carriers are a pernicious threat to public safety. This is due in large part to the challenges facing government agencies to properly vet and filter through the tens of thousands of applicants every year. Under the current system, it remains challenging to determine which of these applications are legitimate and which are flagrantly insolvent companies reopening under new names to avoid responsibility.
Volt Trucking LLC was registered as a business with the Texas Secretary of State’s Office just one day after the fatal crash, on April 26, 2019. The business address was the same as Castellano 03 Trucking – which subsequently dissolved following the crash. Chameleon carriers — like Castellano 03 Trucking, and now Volt Trucking, LLC — are in continual noncompliance with government regulations, cutting corners on safety, training and fleet maintenance.
Conclusion
What can the Rogel Aguilera-Mederos trucking accident of 2019 teach us about road safety and the trucking industry?
- Chameleon truck carriers are a menace on our roads. Companies like Castellano 03 Trucking — now Volt Trucking, LLC — exploit a loophole in the regulatory system designed to keep our roads safe. We need ample regulatory oversight to prevent tragedies like this from becoming more common.
- Brake violations must be taken seriously. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (49 CFR Part 393 Subpart C) stipulates that “commercial motor vehicles must have brakes adequate to stop and hold the vehicle or combination of vehicles, as well as service, parking and emergency brake systems.” The Large Truck Crash Causation Study (2007) found that nearly 29% of truck crashes are due to faulty brakes.
- Truck driver training is critical. At the time of the crash, Aguilera-Mederos had less than a year of professional driving experience. His employer’s hands-off approach to driver training is unacceptable. While staffing issues are a well-known problem in the industry, so is the documented danger of allowing novice truck drivers to take on long-haul assignments. Training programs, at-the-wheel hour requirements, and ongoing safety training are critical to keeping our roads safe.
If you have been affected by a trucking accident or other personal injury case, please contact us today for a free consultation.