Officer Hit, Killed After Being Thrown From Motorcycle

Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 A Burlington County Prosecutor’s Office employee involved in a deadly car accident that killed a township police officer Saturday night has been placed on paid administrative leave.

/* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";} According to police, William McGovern was driving the Ford F-150 truck that struck and killed officer Craig Berner, 52, of Moorestown after he lost control while riding his Honda motorcycle on Route 614 around 10 p.m. on Saturday.

The accident is being investigated by state police and by the Camden County Prosecutor's office to avoid any conflict of interest since McGovern works for Burlington County. McGovern has now been placed on paid administrative leave.

Berner died at the scene. Both men were off duty at the time of the accident.

According to court documents, McGovern has worked as a detective with the Burlington County Prosecutor's office since 1990. Detectives initiate investigations as well as assist other police agencies with investigating a wide range of illegal conduct, according to the prosecutor's annual report.

Berner was a husband and father of three, according to a report on NBCNews.com.

On the Facebook page for Cinnaminson Township, a fellow officer posted that Berner was "a great father, police officer, former U.S. Marine and friend who many will miss dearly."

"Our thoughts, sympathy, and prayers go out to Officer Berner’s family and his extended Moorestown Police/Law Enforcement Family during this trying time. Godspeed."

Community members who knew Berner have been responding all day with condolences.

Ryan Mayer said Patrolman Berner, who was a 26-year veteran on the force, was one of the nicest guys he knew.

Contact Us