More than 100 family members and friends gathered at UC Davis Medical Center to walk 20-year-old Ronnie Joe Franklin Jr. to surgery before he became an organ donor, days after a suspected drunk driver struck him while he was working a highway construction site in Eureka. Franklin, who was looking forward to turning 21 in November, had been positioning safety cones for a Caltrans road crew when he was hit on September 16.
A Fatal Night on Highway 101
According to KCRA, the California Highway Patrol reported that a suspected drunk driver crashed into Franklin as he worked on Highway 101 in Eureka. The driver, 26-year-old Selah Town, was arrested at the scene on suspicion of driving under the influence and released on bond, the station reported. Franklin worked for contractor G.R. Sundberg Inc. on Caltrans’ South Broadway Complete Streets Project, and he was struck near Sunset Drive around 11:24 p.m. when Town’s 2016 GMC Yukon crossed into a lane that had been closed for the overnight construction work, according to Redheaded Blackbelt.
A California Highway Patrol officer assigned to the state’s Construction Zone Enhanced Enforcement Program, known as COZEEP, was actively patrolling inside the South Broadway work zone at the time of the crash, the outlet reported, underscoring that even dedicated police presence couldn’t stop the collision. The work zone had designated lane closures in place from late night until 3:30 a.m., per the same outlet.
From Injury Arrest to Murder Charge
Franklin was first rushed to Providence St. Joseph Hospital in Eureka before being airlifted to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, where he underwent emergency surgeries for life-threatening injuries, entered a coma, and ultimately died from his injuries on September 19, according to Lost Coast Outpost. Multiple surgical teams had attempted to stabilize his life-threatening injuries over three days, the outlet reported.
Once Franklin succumbed to his injuries, investigators obtained an arrest warrant, and on September 22 Town surrendered to the California Highway Patrol’s Humboldt Area office to face a murder charge under California Penal Code Section 187, Lost Coast Outpost reported. Town had originally been arrested for felony DUI causing injury and released on $25,000 bond before the murder charge was filed, per the outlet.
At the time of the crash, Town was serving a three-year court probation after pleading guilty in January 2026 to misdemeanor DUI stemming from a November 2025 arrest, in which a special allegation that her blood-alcohol level was .15 percent or higher was attached to the DUI charge, while the allegation involving a passenger under 14 was dismissed through a plea deal, the outlet reported. The terms of that probation explicitly barred her from driving after consuming alcohol or drugs. Her prior conviction was a factor in the arrest decision. Under the 1981 California Supreme Court ruling in People v. Watson, prosecutors can elevate a fatal DUI collision to second-degree murder if they establish what’s known as implied malice, often proven through a signed advisement from a previous DUI conviction acknowledging that impaired driving is dangerous to human life, according to The Crawford Law Firm, Inc. A conviction under that doctrine can carry an indeterminate sentence of 15 years to life, the firm notes.
A Mother, a Girlfriend, and a Final Gift
Franklin’s mother, Sequoyah Hudson, told KCRA she did not know what went through her son’s mind after he was injured. She described him as hardworking, health-conscious, loving, and loyal, and said he was a loyal friend to those around him.
Franklin’s girlfriend, Jessie Driggs, who had moved in with Franklin earlier this year, called his death devastating and said the two did almost everything together, per the station’s report. She described Franklin as hardworking and motivated, and said his family and friends love him deeply. The family said it is unsure what life will look like without him but is committed to facing it together and keeping his legacy alive, the outlet reported.
Franklin had decided to become an organ donor, and his family said the decision is giving others a chance at life. He had type AB blood, the rarest of the four principal human blood types, found in less than 4 percent of the U.S. population, and transplant specialists were determining possible donations and recipients based on medical and logistical factors, according to Redheaded Blackbelt.
Honor Walks and Work Zone Dangers Statewide
The honor walk held for Franklin follows a standardized hospital tradition in which medical staff and loved ones line corridors as organ donors are escorted to surgery. Federal organ-donation information cited by Redheaded Blackbelt says a single donor can save up to eight lives and restore health for up to 75 people through eye and tissue donation. Hoodline previously covered a similar honor walk tied to another sudden death.
California’s Move Over law, Vehicle Code Section 21809, requires drivers approaching stationary highway maintenance or emergency vehicles with flashing amber lights to move into an adjacent open lane or slow down, a measure intended to protect roadside workers.
