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Trucker Sentenced To 3 Years In Prison For Fatal I-88 Crash

(CBS) -- A truck driver has been sentenced to three years in prison after being convicted of fatigued driving in a crash last year on I-88 that killed a tollway worker and injured a state trooper.

Renato Velasquez, 47, was found guilty last February of one count of Operating a Commercial Motor Vehicle in a Fatigued State; two counts of Failure to Comply With Hours of Service Requirements; one count of Driving Too Fast For Conditions and one count of Failure to Yield to Emergency Vehicles.

Velasquez, of Hanover Park, was operating a semi-trailer-tractor truck on the evening of Jan. 27 last year when his rig plowed into vehicles that were parked on the shoulder along Interstate 88 near Eola Road. In the ensuing crash, tollway employee Vincent Petrella was killed.

"Illinois law imposes rules and regulations on the trucking industry for a reason – to keep the roads safe for all motorists," said DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said. "Ignoring these regulations however, can result in tragic consequences, as we saw in this case. Had Mr. Velasquez gotten the proper amount of rest before getting behind the wheel of his truck, Mr. Petrella would be alive today and Trooper Balder would not be facing a life of pain and suffering."

CBS 2's Mai Martinez reports it was an emotional hearing with impact statements read by the trooper's wife and testimony given by the defendant's daughter. In the end, neither side was happy with the sentence.

Douglas Balder, the state trooper who was critically injured in crash has maintained that Velasquez should have been charged and convicted of something more serious than fatigued driving.

"No matter what happens, he's still getting away with murder," Balder said.

Velasquez arrived shortly before his hearing Monday surrounded by family and friends,but said nothing as he entered the courthouse.

During the hearing he apologized for his actions, but trooper Balder didn't buy it.

"Never anything until this last minute just before sentencing did I ever hear him say 'I'm sorry for this crash or my actions,' Balder said.

The judge said Velazquez should have known the accident was "reasonably foreseeable" when he chose to keep driving far longer than the legal amount of hours.

Velazquez's family had nothing to say following his sentencing, but trooper Balder did--saying the three-year sentence sends the wrong message to other truckers who may be driving with little or no sleep.

"The message that is being sent is if you are to kill somebody, do it with a semi-truck and just say you fell asleep," he said.

Balder says even though he's not satisfied with the sentence, it's is good to finally have some closure in this case.

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