Kailey Blair Carpenter, 27, received two years of probation for a fatal hit-and-run that killed a man near Lake Wylie in June 2025.
York County General Sessions Judge Bill McKinnon handed down the sentence Thursday, Sept. 17, after Carpenter entered an Alford plea to felony hit and run resulting in death. McKinnon suspended a five-year prison term. The charge carries up to 25 years under South Carolina law.
An Alford plea allows a defendant to accept the consequences of a guilty plea without admitting guilt.
The Rock Hill Herald reported from the courtroom as the only media organization present. The victim, Anthony Raheem Parker, 31, of Clover, was found dead along S.C. 55 in western York County on the morning of June 8, 2025. Prosecutor Matthew Shelton told the court the crash happened around midnight.
Carpenter did not stop after the crash. She told police she believed she hit a deer on the dark road, according to Shelton. Investigators traced debris from the scene to her vehicle and arrested her days later.
Parker's family supported the plea deal and did not want a trial, Shelton told the judge. Parker's mother, Mindy Latta, and his grandmother attended the hearing but did not speak. After the sentencing, Latta and Carpenter met in the courthouse hallway, where the two spoke and embraced.
