A Cicero man who was reportedly laughing behind the wheel as he ran over his former girlfriend in a mall parking lot was sentenced Monday to 20 years in prison.
Jose L. Aguirre, 49, had reportedly telephoned his 7-year-old son the night before the August 2018 attack, telling the child that his mother, the victim, did not have long to live, according to testimony in DuPage County court.
About 7:30 a.m. the following day, Aug. 27, 2018, Aguirre drove over the woman in a 2003 Ford SUV as she walked across a lot at the Yorktown Center mall in Lombard. The victim, who suffered extensive injuries, told police that she had noticed Aguirre’s vehicle and had tried to alter her route as she made her way toward an apartment complex where she worked.
Aguirre, though, struck her before driving away. The woman told police she saw him laughing as his vehicle bore down on her. Aguirre was arrested two days later. Police say he was planning to leave the area and drive to Florida.
The victim and Aguirre had been in a seven-year relationship that produced their son, but she told the court she had twice broken things off because Aguirre was a physically abusive alcoholic. Aguirre had sent threatening texts in the days before the attack, she said.
“I thought he would never do something like that and he was just trying to scare me,” she told the court.
The woman’s injuries included a fractured pelvis and broken ribs and a broken jaw, and she had to undergo three surgeries. She spent a month in a hospital.
As the woman read her statement, Aguirre turned away from the witness stand and did not look at the woman. Prosecutors and his defense attorneys argued over whether the gesture signaled contempt or shame.
Aguirre wrote a long letter to the court that was read before sentencing. In it, he repeatedly said he regretted committing an “error” and was sorry for the mistake. Judge Brian Telander said he was having trouble with Aguirre’s characterizations.
“It was not an error and certainly not a mistake — it was a cold, calculated criminal act,” the judge said.
Aguirre had previously pleaded guilty to attempted murder, and under the terms of the negotiated plea, faced a sentence of six to 23 years in prison. The facts of the case merited a long sentence, Telander said.
“I think courts need to send a strong message to people like the defendant who feel, ‘If I can’t have her, then no one will,'” the judge said. “This conduct should not and cannot be tolerated in our society.”
Aguirre will be required to serve 85% of his sentence, with credit for about 18 months spent in jail as his case worked through the court system.
Clifford Ward is a freelance reporter.
