Florida Woman Arrested in Connection With Fatal Klamath County Crash

KLAMATH COUNTY, Ore. (Feb. 13, 2026) — A Florida woman accused in a fatal 2024 crash on Highway 97 in southern Oregon has been arrested on a nationwide felony warrant after failing to appear in court, authorities said.

Desiree Danielle Johnson, 35, was taken into custody earlier today in Pinellas Park, Florida, by the Florida Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force at the request of the Oregon State Police. The arrest was carried out with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Service.

Johnson was wanted out of Klamath County in connection with a Feb. 29, 2024, crash on Highway 97 near milepost 174 that left one woman dead and another critically injured. She faces charges of criminally negligent homicide, second-degree assault and reckless driving.

Johnson is being held at the Pinellas County Jail pending extradition to Oregon.

According to Oregon State Police, troopers responded to the two-vehicle crash at about 10:02 a.m. on Feb. 29, 2024.

A preliminary investigation found that Johnson, then 34 and from St. Petersburg, Florida, was driving a southbound Peterbilt commercial motor vehicle and trailer when it lost control and jackknifed in the roadway. The truck spun and crossed into the path of a northbound Honda Pilot driven by Elise Adair Farrens, 37, of La Pine. The Honda struck the trailer.

Farrens was declared dead at the scene.

A passenger in the Honda, Daviana Marie Trussell, 23, of La Pine, was transported to a hospital with critical injuries. Authorities said Trussell, who was pregnant, suffered the loss of her child due to injuries sustained in the crash.

Johnson reportedly suffered minor injuries.

Highway 97 was closed for approximately 3½ hours during the on-scene investigation. Troopers were assisted by the Deschutes County Sheriff’s Department, Crescent Fire and the Oregon Department of Transportation.

The investigation remains ongoing.

All suspects are believed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law