3 years after Pettigrew St. death, parents seek answers
RALEIGH (WTVD) -- It's been three years since Sharon Hartsfield and Dwight Smith Sr. lost their son. Every year since they've gathered in the very spot where he died.
"It seems like it was just yesterday that it happened," said Smith Sr.
On Aug. 3, 2013, Dwight Smith Jr. was at a birthday party for a friend on Pettigrew Street in Raleigh. Early into the night the celebration turned deadly.
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At 9:45 p.m., Raleigh Police were dispatched to Pettigrew Street after someone called 911. That caller told the dispatcher there was an injured man lying in the middle of the street.
Police said the 26-year-old Smith had been killed in a hit and run. They also said he had already been lying in the street when a car hit him. Smith's mother told ABC11 she had heard rumors that he was beaten up and placed in the street, but that's all she knows.
"No one's come forward with any information," Hartsfield said.
She said every day is a struggle as she thinks about the loss of her only son and firstborn child.
"It's a weight that I carry every day," Hartsfield said.
On Wednesday night, Hartsfield came together for another vigil on Pettigrew Street. She was surrounded by loved ones, including her son's father and his little sister, who is now 14.
"I just miss him," said Alexis Crudup, Smith's younger sister, "I don't have that special bond with anyone else."
The family is not losing hope. They said they talk to Raleigh Police about the investigation every month. At Wednesday night's vigil, police officers were there handing out flyers, like they do every year on Aug. 3, in hopes that someone will break their silence about that night.
"We have faith that one day, they'll come to us and let us know who did this to our son," Smith Sr. said.
Anyone with information that might assist investigating officers is asked to call Raleigh CrimeStoppers at (919) 834-HELP or to go to the CrimeStoppers Web site at www.raleighcrimestoppers.org for instructions on how to report a tip online or by text message.
CrimeStoppers pays cash rewards for anonymous tips that help solve cases.
