Community mourns, hopes for justice after teen boy’s death in Highway 50 hit-and-run

Community members have raised thousands of dollars for the funeral of a 16-year-old boy killed in a hit-and-run early Monday morning on Highway 50 in El Dorado County, as authorities are still seeking the driver who fled following the deadly crash.

The teen, identified by the Sacramento County Coroner’s Office as Josiah Stayner of Pilot Hill, was fatally struck by a vehicle around 3 a.m. Monday on westbound Highway 50 near El Dorado Road, between Shingle Springs and Placerville, according to the California Highway Patrol’s Placerville office.

The suspect vehicle is believed to be a white Honda Accord of model year 2018 to 2022, authorities said.

A verified GoFundMe page, set up by Josiah’s aunt Sydney Fleharty on behalf of the teen’s parents, Nathan and Destiny Stayner, was established this week to raise money for Josiah’s funeral.

“With not only this devastating loss, Destiny, Nathan, and their 3 kids are in the process of looking for a new home while going through this unimaginable time,” Fleharty wrote.

The crowdfunding campaign had raised more than $13,000 as of Friday.

Family members wrote that Josiah, a student at Divide High School in Georgetown, went out for a late-night walk and never returned. According to missing person posters shared on social media in the hours before authorities confirmed his death, Josiah went for a walk near Placerville’s Missouri Flat Road, one freeway exit east of where he was ultimately struck.

Josiah died of his injuries at a hospital, according to the CHP.

Fleharty wrote that Josiah is survived by his parents, two sisters, including a twin sister, and a brother.

Josiah’s older sister, Trinity Stayner, works at Cool Beerwerks, a brewery in the El Dorado County town of Cool. The business wrote in a social media post that it will have a donation box available “to help relieve any financial burdens they will be faced with.”