A truck driver who facing dozens of charges for a deadly pileup crash in April says that he wants to meet with the families of the crash victims before he goes to trial.
On Tuesday, September 3, a Colorado judge granted 23 year old truck driver Rogel Lazaro Aguilera-Mederos a one month continuance to allow his legal team more time to prepare his defense. His arraignment is now scheduled for October 10, CBS4 reports.
Unorthodox offer. Attorney for I-70 Truck Crash suspect is offering victims and their relatives chance to ask Rogel Aguilera-Mederos BEFORE TRIAL anything they want about collision that killed 4. #kdvr pic.twitter.com/SFLgC86Cpc
— Rob Low (@RobLowTV) September 3, 2019
Following the court appearance, attorney Robert Corry told the press that his client wants to meet with the families of the crash victims to answer any questions that they may have before the case goes to trial.
“We can’t bring their loved ones back, but we hope to at least, provide some answers,” Corry said.
Corry also said that he hopes that a trial could be avoided altogether: “We are not giving up on the possibility of resolving the case without a trial,” he said during the court appearance.
Aguilera-Mederos is facing 41 charges including vehicular homicide for a crash that happened in slowed traffic on I-70 near Lakewood, Colorado, on April 25. The pileup ultimately involved 24 passenger vehicle and four semi trucks. Four people were killed and two others were seriously injured in the pileup.
Police have accused Aguilera-Mederos of driving more than 85 m.p.h. on a stretch of mountainous interstate where trucks are limited to 45 m.p.h. In video captured at the scene, Aguilera-Mederos appears to bypass a runaway truck ramp on I-70.
Aguilera-Mederos has maintained that another truck driver who was illegally parked along I-70 is at least partially at fault for the crash.
Officials confirmed that this video, which shows a semi driver swerving across lanes and passing a runaway truck ramp on I-70, is Aguilera-Mederos prior to last week’s crash.https://t.co/7T6Wg57Ybf pic.twitter.com/Sdk6rhKQVV
— Denver7 News (@DenverChannel) May 3, 2019
Aguilera-Mederos remains free on a $400,000 bond and has been granted permission to leave the state of Colorado while he awaits trial.