LOS ANGELES — The father of a 6-year-old California boy who was murdered in his carseat in a road rage shooting is suing the child’s mom — claiming her “aggressive” driving caused the confrontation.
Aiden Leos’ mom, Joanna Cloonan, hit back at the lawsuit, telling ABC7 it has dredged up the pain of watching her son die in front of her in 2021.
Her lawyer called the suit “the most abusive case” he’s ever seen.
Aiden was shot on the 55 Freeway in Orange County on his way to kindergarten just days after his birthday when Marcus Anthony Eriz opened fire on Cloonan’s car. He claimed that Cloonan merged front of him and then flipped him off.
“As I started to merge away from them, I heard a really loud noise,” Cloonan said. “And my son said, ‘Ow,’ and I had to pull over. And he got shot,” the mother told Good Morning America in a May 2021.
Eriz was convicted of murder and is serving 25 years to life.
Leos’ father, Joey Leos, also named Eriz and his girlfriend, who was a passenger in the car at the time, in the lawsuit.
Cloonan, who testified at Eriz’s trial, denied that she caused the attack that killed her son and slammed the lawsuit.
“He’s revictimized me … fully, and I’ve had to relive all that pain over again,” she told ABC7. “I just want to be left alone.”