Prosecutor will ask that trucker's sentence be reduced 0:47
(CNN) -
A Colorado district judge set a hearing for January 13 to reconsider the 110-year prison sentence of Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, the Cuban trucker convicted of an accident in which four people died.
First Judicial District Attorney Alexis King said her office will likely recommend a sentence of 20 to 30 years.
At Monday's preliminary hearing, Judge A. Bruce Jones sought to resolve procedural issues given the unprecedented nature of the case, in which the prosecution initiated the request for a lower sentence, rather than the defense.
The case has attracted national attention for the length of the sentence.
Jones said he was forced to pass the 110-year sentence because of state sentencing guidelines.
At Monday's hearing, both the prosecution and the defense said they want to make sure that any resentencing decision does not interfere with the defendant's right to appeal.
The judge is giving the attorneys time to investigate the procedural issues and ensure that the proper steps are taken in the correct order.
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They ask for pardon for the Cuban truck driver sentenced to 110 years in prison for a fatal accident in Colorado in 2019
The January 13 hearing is scheduled to be held in person, and Jones said he prefers Aguilera-Mederos to appear, but does not want her to testify.
However, Jones will allow family members of victims to testify or provide written testimony.
It will also allow anyone who wants to put something in writing on behalf of the defendant to do so.
"I'm concerned that this will become a circus, and it won't be a circus as far as I'm concerned," Jones said Monday.
King asks the court to consider a sentence of between 20 and 30 years "based on the facts of this case and the contributions of the victims and their families," King previously said in a statement.
"This is an exceptional case and requires an exceptional process," he told reporters after Monday's hearing.
"The defendant caused the deaths of four people, serious bodily injury to others, and the impact of his truck caused damage to many more in our community," continued King.
"Knowing all of that, my office began the resentencing process the same week the defendant was sentenced, so that the court could consider an alternative sentence that was not tied to mandatory sentencing structures."
Accident and sentence
Aguilera-Mederos was driving at 137 km / h in a semi-trailer in April 2019 when his brakes failed, he told investigators at the time.
It crashed, causing an intense 28-car crash on I-70 that killed four people and injured others, the Lakewood Police Department said at the time.
Miguel Ángel Lamas Arellano, 24, died;
William Bailey, 67;
Doyle Harrison, 61;
and Stanley Politano, 69.
In October, Aguilera-Mederos, 26, was convicted of four counts of vehicular manslaughter and 23 other counts, including six counts of first-degree assault for extreme indifference;
10 counts of attempted battery in the first degree for extreme indifference;
two counts of reckless vehicular assault;
a reckless driving charge;
and four counts of negligent driving that caused death.
He was sentenced on December 13.
In sentencing earlier this month, Colorado District Court Judge A. Bruce Jones said he was tied to mandatory minimum sentencing laws in the state, CNN affiliate KMGH reported.
Mother of Cuban trucker sentenced to 110 years in prison: "My son has 4 life sentences. Not a terrorist"
In a motion requesting the hearing, King noted: "As Colorado law requires sentencing in this case, the law also allows the court to reconsider its sentence in an exceptional case involving unusual and extenuating circumstances."
The reduction of the sentence would not nullify Aguilera-Mederos' conviction.
Colgan said state sentencing laws need to be changed.
"The law doesn't really distinguish between people like Mr. Medeiros, who is not a danger to society, and other people who are sentenced to life imprisonment who are a danger to society," Colgan said.
"The law has to make such exceptions and understand that there is a difference between Mr. Medeiros and those other types of people."
Criticisms against the sentence
Could he appeal his 110-year Aguilera-Mederos prison sentence?
2:54
The ruling drew immediate criticism, and an online petition urging Governor Jared Polis to reduce Aguilera-Mederos' sentence or grant him clemency has garnered more than 4.7 million signatures.
Kim Kardashian West, who has been active on criminal justice issues, posted a series of tweets about the case on Tuesday and ended by saying that Polis "is a really good person and I know she will do the right thing."
Polis' office told CNN it is reviewing Aguilera-Medros's clemency request.
"We just received the request from Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, and our legal team is currently reviewing it. Once we reach a decision, we will make an announcement," press secretary Conor Cahill told CNN in an email.
Duane Bailey, William Bailey's brother, recently told CNN that he and others met with Polis.
"We told him that we thought he should honestly stay out of it until the court proceeding is over," said Duane Bailey.
"For the governor to get involved before that process would be inappropriate."
In her statement last week, King said she and her team had spoken with the surviving victims of the accident and with the families of the deceased about the possibility of Aguilera-Medros being re-sentenced.
CNN's Raja Razek, Jennifer Feldman, Melissa Alonso, Amir Vera, and Michelle Watson contributed to this article.
Colorado Judgment
