Man pleads guilty in 2019 Cumberland County fatal wreck
A Nash County man pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter last week in a fatal 2019 crash in Cumberland County.
Thomas Zavo, 38, of Nashville, North Carolina, also pleaded guilty on June 28 to possession of a schedule III controlled substance in the death of Daniel Amos Ezzell, 36, according to court documents. In exchange for Zavo’s guilty plea, charges of second-degree murder, driving on a revoked license, possession of cocaine, possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia and failure to stop at a stop sign were dismissed.
Initial report: 1 dead, 3 seriously injured in crash
The deadly crash took place at 7:57 a.m. March 28, 2019, in Stedman, according to the accident report. Zavo was driving north at 40 mph on Hayfield Road when he did not stop at a stop sign and crossed into the path of a 1994 Chevrolet van driven on Wade-Stedman Road by Buddy Ezzell, then 58, of Autryville, the report states.
Daniel Ezzell, an unbelted rear passenger in the van, was ejected and died at the scene, according to the accident report. Zavo, Buddy Ezzell and another passenger in the van, Earl Ezzell, then 65, were taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center with serious injuries, the report states. The relationship between Buddy Ezzell and his two passengers was not listed.
Zavo was initially charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle, but additional charges came after his blood tested positive for cocaine and benzoylecgonine, a metabolite of cocaine, according to court documents.
Zavo is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 28, according to court documents. The plea arrangement states he will receive a minimum of one year, four months and a maximum of two years, five months in prison for the involuntary manslaughter charge and a 45-day suspended sentence for the drug charge, with 16 months of supervised probation.
Public safety reporter Lexi Solomon can be reached at ABSolomon@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Nash County man pleads guilty to 2019 Stedman fatal wreck
