Teen dies after being struck crossing highway

John-Paul Wills, 16, hit by car after leaving work at night.

By: Scott Morgan
   BORDENTOWN TOWNSHIP — A little over a month ago, John-Paul Wills got a job at Denny’s.
   On March 30, 16-year-old John-Paul left work around 11 p.m. and headed for his East Chestnut Street home in Bordentown City — but didn’t get there.
   Attempting to cross Route 130/206 on foot, said township police, John-Paul was struck by a driver heading south. According to police, he had tried to cross near Butts Avenue, in an area not designed for pedestrians, when a 54-year-old man from Burlington driving a 2004 Honda Accord in the left lane crested the hill at Crosswicks Street and struck John-Paul.
   John-Paul was airlifted to Capital Health Systems Helene Fuld campus in Trenton, where he was originally being treated for severe head and leg injuries. He died shortly after.
   While the investigation continues, police said the driver who struck John-Paul immediately pulled over and tended to the scene. There are no charges filed at this time.
   Family members could not be reached for comment, but according to John-Pauls’ obituary, he was born in Trenton, raised in New Egypt and moved to Bordentown in 2001. He loved skateboarding and playing his electric guitar.
   He also wanted to be a landscaper. Edward Colona, principal of the Burlington County Special Services School District in Westampton, where John-Paul was in his junior year, said that John-Paul was just getting into the swing of the horticulture program at the school and "showed some potential" for the field.
   "He was doing an excellent job," Mr. Colona said.
   His death, of course, comes as a shock to the school, where John-Paul was well-known and well-liked, he said.
   We have counselors and psychologists working with the students to help them deal with this," Mr. Colona said. This is tough for kids no matter where they go to school."
   The death of John-Paul Wills comes almost three months to the day after 15-year-old Ashley Mohacsi of Fieldsboro was struck and killed by a still-unknown driver while walking along East Burlington Street to a New Year’s Eve party in Bordentown City.
   Memorial services for John-Paul were scheduled for Wednesday night. Memorial contributions can be sent to either the Burlington County Special Services School District, 20 Pioneer Boulevard, Mount Holly, NJ, 08060 or to Bordentown Regional High School, 50 Dunns Mill Road, Bordentown, NJ, 08505.