Swannanoa woman pleads guilty to hit-and-run resulting in death, Buncombe DA says

ASHEVILLE - A Swannanoa woman pleaded guilty April 29 to felony "hit-and-run resulting in death" of a Fletcher man on U.S. 70 east of Asheville in July 2022.

Estafania Salgado Mata, 21, was sentenced by Superior Court Judge Alan Thornburg to serve a 16-29-months suspended prison term and placed on 36 months of supervised probation, according to an April 30 news release from the Buncombe County District Attorney's Office.

The North Carolina Highway Patrol charged Mata with the hit-and-run after the death of 56-year-old Terence "Duane" Weaver. He was from Fletcher.

"God gave me a special son," said his mother, Betty Weaver, in a May 1 conversation with the Citizen Times. "I could never have a better son than the one I had."

She remembered the shock on the night of his death, and of exchanging “I love yous” before he left to go to a concert in Black Mountain after work.

That night, on his way home, he gave someone a ride, something he hadn't planned to do. He had only one helmet, which he leant to his passenger, Betty Weaver said.

Weaver was driving his motorcycle, with the passenger, westbound on U.S. 70 the night of July 7, 2022, when he "lost control and crashed the motorcycle into a grassy embankment on the side of the roadway," the release said.

The crash ejected Weaver into lanes of travel. The female passenger of the motorcycle was knocked unconscious, but later reported a full recovery. While Weaver was lying in the road, a red Ford Focus, which law enforcement say Mata was driving, struck him and did not stop.

Weaver was determined to be dead at the scene.

An autopsy determined the cause of death to be multiple blunt force injuries but could not determine whether the injuries were caused by the motorcycle crash or the subsequent car crash, the release said.

Investigators also determined that Weaver was not wearing a helmet.

Hendersonville Attorney Nathan Stallings, who represented Mata, told the Citizen Times May 1 that it was a tragic case, and Mata "has remorse and sorrow for what happened."

“She accepted responsibility for leaving the scene. To be 21 years old and standing in front of a judge and accept responsibility and be punished for it, I commend her for it," he said. He thanked the District Attorney's office and said he hoped the case brought some closure for the family.

“Mr. Weaver’s family were advised of the guilty plea, were present in court for sentencing, and expressed appreciation for the work performed by investigators with the N.C. Highway Patrol. I wish the family peace and healing,” District Attorney Todd Williams said in the release.

Mata was ordered to refrain from driving while on probation, perform 100 hours of community service, and serve a 30-day split sentence in jail.

Betty Weaver said the guilty plea brought some measure of closure as the family would not have to continue going to court, but that it was still "devastating."

Weaver had an opportunity to address Mata while they were in the courtroom, and she told her that "every day when I wake up now, I have a question for God. When will the day come that I stop missing Duane so much?"

A graduate of T.C. Roberson High School, he worked at Linamar of Arden, according to his obituary. He built his first Harley motorcycle right out of high school, Betty Weaver said, and he was always protective of his bike and whoever rode with him.

Weaver remembered her son comforting her after the death of her husband, his father, two decades before.

"He said 'mom, we will get through this. I will make sure you get through this'," she said, and then he kissed her on the cheek.

More: NC Highway Patrol: Swannanoa woman charged in hit-and-run

Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Swannanoa woman pleads guilty to hit-and-run, Buncombe DA says