Man dies after leap off Walt Whitman Bridge

A man died this morning after jumping off the Walt Whitman Bridge, according to Philadelphia police.

The man reportedly pulled his vehicle over on the bridge during rush hour and jumped.

The Coast Guard pulled him out of the water and took him to Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.

He was 37 and from Audubon, N.J., according to a Delaware River Port Authority spokesman, who declined to release the name. The jump occurred at 8:42 a.m., he said.

Traffic on the bridge was jammed for about a half-hour as police investigated the incident.

No other details were available.

Several other bridge-jumping cases have made headlines in the recent months.

Early on April 7, John "J.T." Haggerty, a football player at Haddonfield Memorial High School, jumped off the Ben Franklin Bridge, after being pursued by Philadelphia police.

He was driving the wrong way on Arch Street and nearly struck a police officer who tried to stop him, leading to the chase, police said at the time.

His body has not been recovered.

On March 28, Brian Smith, 37, suspected of raping a 14-year-old Delaware girl, threatened to jump off the Commodore Barry Bridge during a seven-hour standoff with authorities.

The New Castle, Del., man surrendered to police.

In October, George Palladino, 15, a sophomore at Deptford High School, died after jumping off the Walt Whitman Bridge. His body was found in late November.