Eagle Mountain road rage suspect pleads guilty to two counts of manslaughter

PROVO – An Eagle Mountain man has pleaded guilty to two counts of manslaughter in a 2023 road rage crash on State Route 73 that claimed the lives of two innocent bystanders.

Peterson Matheson appeared before Judge Robert A. Lund in Fourth District Court in Provo Tuesday from the Utah County Jail. He accepted the terms of the plea agreement, in which the state’s five other charges, including two counts of negligently operating a vehicle resulting in death (F2), and reckless driving (Class B Mis.), were dismissed.

During Tuesday’s hearing, Matheson appeared disinterested and bothered by the proceeding as he listened to statements from the prosecution and answered questions from the judge, often requiring the judge’s questions to be repeated.

“On June 4, 2023, in Utah County, Utah Mr. Matheson became involved in a traffic altercation with another individual and in the course of that altercation operated his vehicle in a reckless manner which resulted in a collision causing the deaths of two individuals in another vehicle,” stated Utah State Prosecutor Rachelle Shumway to the court.

“Mr. Matheson, do you hear those facts?” Lund asked. “Yes,” Matheson responded. “Do you agree they’re true?” Lund said. “Yeah, yep,” Matheson said. “Yes?” Lund asked again. “Yes,” Matheson answered.

Matheson is one of two people involved in last year’s June 4 road rage altercation on S.R. 73 that resulted in the deaths of Rodney Salm and his girlfriend, Michaela Himmleberger, who went by Mischa. The couple were on a joyride that afternoon, in Rodney Salm’s 1987 Porsche.

As Matheson and the other driver engaged in road rage, Matheson drove his truck on the shoulder and rammed the side of the other driver’s vehicle. He then lost control of his truck and slammed head-on into the Porsche, killing Salm and Himmelberger.

“The prosecutors actually approached us many months ago about a possibility of a plea deal, and at the time, we kind of thought, obviously these things drag out a long time and my dad’s pushing 90 years old and it’s really hard on him,” said Peter Salm, Rodney’s brother. “And so, we came to the conclusion that a plea deal isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

Peter Salm watched Tuesday’s hearing from his home in Nevada and shared his feelings about the plea deal with KSL TV after the proceeding.

“You know, I’m fine with it. I’m not a vindictive person. I know this guy didn’t get out of bed in the morning and decide he’s going to go and kill two people. It doesn’t happen that way. But at the same time, I believe he’s accountable for his actions. And this judge has been, you know, very fair with the victims in this.”

After Rodney and Mischa’s deaths, the families of the two victims used GoFundMe money raised in their honor to fund a Zero Fatalities campaign against road rage and help fight for the new road rage penalty enhancement law that took effect in July.

“We need to get the word out to people who have this mindset that it’s not going to pay off, and that they’re going to have to pay the price if they are involved in a similar situation,” Peter Salm said.

With the plea agreement, Matheson now faces the possibility of spending one to 15 years in prison for each manslaughter charge. He is scheduled to be sentenced on January 6, 2025. However, because Judge Lund is leaving the court, that sentencing hearing could be moved up to sometime in December, pending completion of a pre-sentencing report from Adult Probation and Parole.

“I hope he learns from it, and hope he realizes that what he’s done is, you know, it’s this thing could have been so easily avoided,” Peter Salm said.

Peter Salm said he will attend Matheson’s sentencing to honor and represent his brother, who didn’t deserve to die while on an outing, simply enjoying the company of his girlfriend and his cherished car. He said he wanted his brother to be remembered as a wonderful man who had a passion for life.

“He was really a fun-loving guy, full of practical jokes, we all miss him dearly,” Peter Salm said. “He brightened up a room when he walked in, and I want people to remember that that was him – that was his demeanor.”