ASHEVILLE, N.C. (828newsNOW) — A Buncombe County jury has convicted Eric Jeron Wilson, 36, of Candler, of second-degree murder in the shooting death of Jeremy Greer, 41, following an eight-day trial.

The verdict was delivered late Wednesday afternoon in Buncombe County Superior Court, a news release from the Buncombe County District Attorney’s Office said. Superior Court Judge Steven Warren sentenced Wilson to serve between 216 and 272 months — or 18 to 22 years — in prison.

Greer was shot on Nov. 29, 2023, in the driveway of Wilson’s home in Candler. According to evidence presented during trial, Greer, a passenger in a vehicle with Wilson, was shot once in the chest around 10:20 p.m. He died at Mission Hospital less than an hour later.

Wilson told authorities he believed Greer was reaching for a gun in his backpack and shot him with a 9mm Glock 17. However, no weapon was found in Greer’s possession, the news release from the district attorney’s office said.

Investigators said Wilson had picked up Greer in Boone the day before the shooting, and Greer had stayed overnight at Wilson’s home. Witnesses testified that there had been no physical altercation and the shooting stemmed from a disagreement over drop-off plans.

Wilson claimed self-defense, stating Greer had changed his behavior before the shooting. He fired after about a minute of what he described as suspicious, non-assaultive behavior, the district attorney’s office said in the release. Wilson remained at the scene and called 911.

Critical evidence presented at trial included text messages between Wilson and Greer, some of which Wilson had attempted to delete. Prosecutors used the recovered communications to challenge defense testimony and dispute Wilson’s self-defense claim.

Under North Carolina law, when a defendant asserts self-defense, prosecutors must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the killing was not justified.

The state was represented by Assistant District Attorneys Austin Braxton and Katie Kurdys. Melissa Matthews, a legal assistant in the District Attorney’s Office, supported the trial team.

“I extend my sincere gratitude to the jury for their diligent and thoughtful consideration of all the evidence we presented at trial,” Braxton said in the release. “My deepest sympathies remain with Jeremy Greer’s family, and I wish them peace and healing in the days ahead.”

Wilson was arrested on Nov. 30, 2023, and charged with second-degree murder.