Road rage killer gets 40 years to life for shooting boy, 6, dead as youngster ... trends now
A road rage killer who shot dead a six-year-old boy on a California freeway after the child's mother gave him the middle finger was sentenced to 40 years to life on Friday.
Marcus Eriz, 27, was sentenced in the Orange County Superior Court for murdering Aiden Leos in May 2021, when the boy was being taken to kindergarten on Freeway 55 in Orange County.
In January, Eriz was convicted by a jury of second-degree murder and shooting at an occupied motor vehicle.
In a tearful apology, the killer addressed Aiden's family and the rest of the court before being led away in handcuffs.
'I would like to start by saying that Aiden looked like a beautiful, precious, sweet, and happy little boy,' Eriz said.
Aiden Leos (pictured) was killed while being taken by his mother to kindergarten
Marcus Eriz (seen here reading his apology statement to the courtroom) fired his Glock in a fit of anger. His girlfriend, Wynne Lee, was driving and had cut off Aiden's mother, who then gave them the middle finger. Eriz responded by firing his gun. His bullet travelled through the trunk of the car before striking Aiden in the chest
Aiden's mother testified that she heard something hit her car (pictured) before Aiden cried out. When she turned around, the little boy was slumped over
He continued: 'He was a son, a brother, and a friend to others. He looked as if he brightened up the world everywhere he went, and truly one of God's little angels'.
At this point Eriz's voice began to crack and he adjusted his glasses.
'I am so sorry for ever hurting him and for the pain that he went through because of me. He never deserved it and neither did his family'.
On May 21, 2021, Joanna Cloonan was taking her son Aiden Leos to kindergarten, when a white Volkswagen SportWagen cut her off in the carpool lane.
According to Cloonan's testimony, after cutting her off, Eriz's girlfriend, Wynne Lee, who was driving the vehicle, flashed a 'peace sign' at her.
'I didn't want to be near these people,' Cloonan recounted. 'I left the carpool lane. We were next to each other. I made a gesture. And I started to merge away from them'.
That 'gesture' was the middle finger, and it was a gesture that Cloonan 'would regret beyond comprehension,' as one prosecutor put it.
Cloonan further testified that after she gave Eriz and Lee the middle finger, she made eye contact with Eriz, who was sitting in the front passenger seat.
'He looked at me and smiled after the gesture,' Cloonan said.
Mere moments later, she heard an impact, followed by her son Aiden crying out. She turned around and saw the six-year-old boy slumped over in his seat.
The distressed mother swerved over to the side of the road and dialed 911 as she cradled her bleeding child.
An off-duty police officer and paramedics desperately tried to save the boy, but he was later pronounced dead at the hospital, just ten days after his sixth birthday.
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