5K run held for student killed in alcohol-related crash

Raleigh, N.C. — Runners took part in a race Saturday in honor of a Wakefield High School student who died in an alcohol-related crash.

Sadiki Young, 18, was killed on Jan. 13, 2007, when the Ford Escort he was riding in crashed on Wakefield Plantation Drive near Village Spring Road.

Driver Christopher John Palmeri, 18, pleaded guilty in August to involuntary manslaughter and drunken-driving. He was sentenced to 16 to 20 months in prison, with all but five months suspended.

Investigators said Palmeri had a blood-alcohol level of 0.06 percent but that speed was the primary factor in the crash. Palmeri had been driving at 72 mph at the time of the accident, they determined.

Organizers of the 5K run said they wanted to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving.

Young's mother said she was moved by the 700 people who participate in the downtown Raleigh event.

“I realize how much he touched people and you know you could live a long lifetime and not do what he did in 18 years,” Rosemarie Newman said.

Race proceeds will go to a local church youth fund and Wakefield High School's "Think First" program.