MAUNAWILI — The mother of a 35-year-old man who was killed when his speeding car plunged off the Pali Highway early Wednesday said yesterday that she still couldn't believe that her only son was dead.

Patty Lee reflected on the life of Terance Daniel Lee, who was known to family and friends as Toby, as she leafed through a photo album in her home.

She said she couldn't understand how a person so bright and gregarious would die in such a "stupid" way.

"It's a gigantic contradiction where he dies in a blaze of stupid glory, racing down the Pali Highway, acting like a 15-year-old, and he has all these other things that are so wonderful going for him. It just doesn't make sense to me," Lee said.

Family and friends gathered at the Lee home yesterday afternoon to remember a man who they said was a friend to everyone. They also met to plan his funeral.

Lee was killed early Wednesday when his speeding, Kailua-bound Nissan 350Z slammed into a barrier just makai of the Pali Highway tunnels. Lee's car flew over the barrier and crashed 40 feet below.

Lee was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said they believe Lee was racing with another car and asked that anyone with information call police.

Lee graduated from Mid-Pacific Institute in 1988, earned an undergraduate degree at Colorado State University, and received a law degree from Gonzaga University in Washington state.

While in Washington, he befriended Washington Supreme Court Justice Richard Guy, who would eventually hire Lee as a clerk.

Yesterday, the retired justice was at the Lee home to comfort the family, but also to be comforted. Guy recalled how Lee was always "very happy. He always thought the surf was up."

He said he and everyone who knew Lee were devastated by his death.

Although police say speed and alcohol were factors in the crash, Guy said he wasn't going to pass judgment on Lee.

"I don't look for fault. And I don't look for causes. I look at what happened, and it's a tragedy for everybody," Guy said. "My feeling is society has lost someone. He was just coming on. He was going to be something."

Lee had taken over his father's tax-law practice about five years ago. He also was active in domestic-violence issues.

In his spare time, Lee enjoyed pottery, and some of his pieces adorn the family home.

Lee did much of his work at the Honolulu Academy of Arts, where a director there has offered to name a kiln after him, said Dan Lee, Toby's father.

"He's a likable person. He could pick up friends easily," Dan Lee said.

As more people arrived at her home and offered their condolences, Patty Lee said she hoped her son did not die in vain.

"I hope that somebody else thinks twice before they decide they're gonna go off and race through the Pali tunnel, and it saves a life, then it's OK. At least (his death) will have some value to it," she said.

In addition to his parents, Lee is survived by sisters Denise and Dominique, and Shandra Kanaha.

A funeral will be held at 5 p.m. Wednesday in St. John Vianney Church in Kailua.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.