Semi truck brake shoe “memento” exchanged between district attorneys who prosecuted trucker sentenced to 110 years

Two deputy district attorneys who prosecuted the trucker recently sentenced to 110 years in prison apparently exchanged a trophy made out of a semi truck brake shoe in celebration of their win, a Facebook post reveals. 

The Facebook post, which appears to have been deleted, was posted to a Facebook group for defense attorneys sometime in the last week by Deputy District Attorney Kayla Wildeman and reads:

The picture included in the post appears to show a gold plaque engraved with Wildeman’s name, the case number, and the phrase “I-70 Case,” on what appears to be a brake part. 

The truck driver sentenced in the case, Rogel Aguilera-Mederos, said during the trail that he lost his brakes and could not control the truck he was driving, leading to the crash that killed four people and caused a 28 vehicle pile up. 

Since that post and its subsequent deletion, First Judicial District Attorney Alexis King said in a statement on Monday, December 20th that the brake shoe was not an actual piece of evidence from the case and assured that it is not typical for prosecutors to exchange gifts in celebration of a trial victory, reported the Canon City Daily Record.

“The post was in very poor taste and does not reflect the values of my administration,” the statement said. “We have addressed it internally.” Both Wildeman and Moritzky could not be reached for comment Monday. 

“This is very disturbing,” Tristan Gorman, legislative policy coordinator for the Colorado Criminal Defense Bar, said about the post. “It obviously flies in the face of the prosecution’s ethical obligation to seek justice rather than a conviction… It’s just bragging rights about a trial win, where people on both sides, their lives were either ended or forever changed. The tone of it seems almost like the prosecutor is treating it like a game she won.”