A 54-year-old Franklin Township man died early Friday after the white Maserati he was driving slammed into the back of a red Toyota near a Monroe Township Walmart, rolled over multiple times and ejected him onto South Black Horse Pike. The Toyota's driver and passenger were hospitalized with injuries described as non-life-threatening, while the Maserati driver was pronounced dead at the scene.
Monroe Township Police responded to South Black Horse Pike and East Malaga Road at roughly 12:06 a.m. Friday, according to NJ.com. Police said a red Toyota, driven by a 33-year-old Woodstown man, had exited a Walmart parking lot and merged onto South Black Horse Pike before changing lanes into the inside westbound lane. The Franklin Township man was driving the Maserati west on the same road when it approached the Toyota from behind and its front end struck the Toyota's rear, according to police.
The impact sent the Maserati rolling over numerous times, ejecting its driver from the vehicle. Police and emergency personnel performed lifesaving efforts at the scene, per the police statement relayed to NJ.com, but the man was pronounced dead there. The Toyota's driver and passenger were transported to the Cooper Trauma Center in Camden for treatment.
Why Ejection Crashes Are So Often Fatal
Cooper University Hospital in Camden operates as South Jersey's only Level I Adult Trauma Center, serving a nine-county region that includes Gloucester County for the most critical trauma emergencies, according to Cooper University Health Care. The hospital handles thousands of emergency trauma cases annually across southern New Jersey, making it the default destination for multi-victim crashes throughout the region — a pattern Hoodline noted in its earlier coverage of a separate South Jersey crash that hospitalized 14 people.
The outcome for the Maserati driver reflects a grim statistical reality tracked by federal safety regulators. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration data shows that roughly 75% of passenger vehicle occupants who are completely ejected from a car during a collision suffer fatal injuries, a figure cited in safety research compiled by the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety. Separate federal research published by that same division found that wearing a lap and shoulder seat belt reduces the risk of fatal injury by 45% and moderate-to-critical injury by 50% for front-seat occupants of passenger cars.
New Jersey law, under N.J.S.A. 39:3-76.2f, requires drivers and passengers in passenger vehicles to wear seat belts while operating on public roads, a mandate that has been enforced statewide since 2000. It remains unknown whether the Maserati driver was wearing a seat belt prior to being ejected from the vehicle.
A Commercial Corridor With a History of Deadly Crashes
The crash unfolded along South Black Horse Pike near the Walmart Supercenter at 1840 South Black Horse Pike, a stretch of roadway co-designated as U.S. Route 322 and known as a high-volume commercial corridor in Gloucester County. The same stretch of highway has seen other fatal collisions this year — in March, a 33-year-old pedestrian was struck and killed near South Main Street, according to Daily Voice. Gloucester County recorded 26 fatal motor vehicle collisions in 2024, per crash statistics compiled by Davis Saperstein & Salomon, amid a 14.5% statewide increase in traffic fatalities between 2023 and 2024.
Investigation Continues Into Cause
Sgt. John Van Leer of the Monroe Township Police Department's Traffic Safety Bureau is investigating the collision. Under New Jersey law, investigators may examine whether the Toyota driver failed to yield the right-of-way while entering the highway from the Walmart lot under N.J.S.A. 39:4-90, and whether the Maserati was following too closely under N.J.S.A. 39:4-89, a violation that carries five motor vehicle points in the state. Whether speed or impairment played a role in the Maserati's high-impact rear-end collision has not been determined, and no charges or citations have been announced.
Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to contact Sgt. Van Leer at 856-728-9800, ext. 583, or [email protected]. Anonymous tips can also be submitted at monroetwppd.opsnetwork.org/tips or by calling 856-875-2940. Those needing immediate police assistance can reach the Monroe Township Police Department at 856-728-0800, while emergency assistance can always be requested by calling 911.
