Tributes to '˜big-hearted' student who died on the A27 at Oving

The family of a fun-loving teenager who died on the A27 have paid tribute to him ahead of an inquest this month.
Tribute piece before the inquest into Joan James SUS-181218-125843001Tribute piece before the inquest into Joan James SUS-181218-125843001
Tribute piece before the inquest into Joan James SUS-181218-125843001

Joan James Russon Saez, known as JJ, died aged 18 after he was involved in a collision with a van close to the Oving lights junction with Shopwhyke Road on May 1.

The student, who lived in Spain, had come to Chichester on holiday every year since he was a baby to visit family and friends and was described as having ‘a big heart’ and being ‘full of life’.

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His father, John, said Joan was on his way back from seeing friends in Chichester and almost home when the incident happened.

Joan was airlifted to Southampton General Hospital but later died of his injuries. Police said they will not be pursuing the case as there was insufficient evidence the van driver had committed an offence.

In a tribute to Joan, his family said he was someone who loved outdoor sports and adventure, who had friends all over the world.

They said the loss ‘seemed like a horror film’ and was difficult to accept.

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They wrote: “He loved to help people, he had a big heart. He was very good at talking to people from any age or background. He always had time for friends that had problems and he always tried to help them if he could.

“He loved music, he had fantastic taste in music, thanks to him we use to listen to Queen, Avicci, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay, Imagine Dragons...and a lot of 70s and 80s music. Sometimes we used to play who would guess the track first in the car.

“One of the many things we miss are his stories, he would talk to us and tell us things he had been doing. It was like being a teenager again (but more of how we would have liked to have been).

“He will always be in our hearts and we will miss him until we see him again.”

An inquest is expected to be held on January 28.