Moises Aguilar Nieves' 3-year-old son squirmed and wiggled in the front row of a St. Paul courtroom, not understanding the gravity of what was happening a few feet in front of him.
The boy will be at least 13 when his father is released from prison. Nieves, 36, of Richfield was convicted last month of unintentional second-degree murder and was sentenced Friday by Ramsey County District Judge Michael B. Fetsch to 15 years in prison. He must serve two-thirds of that before he is eligible for release.
Nieves drove his 5,000-pound GMC Yukon into David Ramirez (also known as Sergio Escalona), 46, on the morning of Oct. 21 at an intersection in St. Paul's North End.
Prosecutor David Hunt told the jury that Nieves was motivated by jealousy. He was in love with Maria Rocha, 23, Ramirez's former girlfriend, and he became enraged when he saw them talking at the window of her vehicle.
Defense attorney Corey Sherman argued that Rocha had told Nieves that Ramirez had raped, assaulted and threatened her. Nieves had a reasonable fear that Rocha was in danger that morning and acted on it. Although he meant only to scare Ramirez, the killing was justified, Sherman said.
At the hearing Friday, the victim's daughter, Veronica Escalona, spoke to the court, saying, "I really don't like what happened. I've been having hard times at school and hard times with my baby. ... It's hard to go on in life because he's not here anymore. The only reason I'm here now is to make justice."
Interpreter Michael Lee translated a letter written in Spanish by Nieves' longtime girlfriend and mother of his five children. She said it's the children who are suffering the most, particularly his 16-year-old son, who has stopped going to school and says "nothing really matters."
She said Nieves was "a good father" and "incapable of doing damage to anyone."
