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MERRY HILL – An early morning crash near here Wednesday claimed the life of a 22-year-old Windsor man.

Shanaar Parker of Spruill Park Lane died later that same day at Vidant Chowan Hospital in Edenton as a result of the injuries he suffered in the single-car accident.

North Carolina Highway Patrol Trooper C.W. Godwin cited in his report that Parker was a front seat passenger in a 2008 Chrysler passenger car operated by 35-year-old Justin Hipsky of Rocky Mount. That vehicle was northbound on US 17, less than one mile south of Jeff White Road, at the time of the accident (5:09 a.m.).

Trooper Godwin’s report showed that the vehicle traveled off the right side of the highway and struck a tree. Both men were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash, per Godwin’s report.

The report also showed reckless driving and exceeding the posted speed limit as contributing factors in the accident.

As a result, Godwin initially charged Hipsey with reckless driving. The Ahoskie office of the NC Highway Patrol is currently consulting with the local District Attorney over the possibility of additional charges since the accident resulted in a death.

The fatality was the 16^th of the year in the Highway Patrol’s Troop A / District II area (Bertie, Gates and Hertford counties). Eight of those deaths have occurred in Bertie County.