Standoff shuts bridge

A disturbed New Jersey man believed to be armed with a gun, traveling with his companion and their baby son, surrendered last night to police after a 31/2-hour standoff on the Walt Whitman Bridge that threw the evening rush into chaos.

The driver of a Cadillac Escalade, identified as Johnny L. Reed IV, 35, of Sicklerville, told police he believed that he was being followed by federal agents and wanted to communicate his grievances to Michelle Obama, the wife of the presidential candidate.

Shortly before 8, Reed raised his arms and gave up after his attempt to flee a New Jersey state trooper had turned into a stalemate on the state line. All seven lanes of the region's busiest bridge were shut down, inconveniencing thousands of rush-hour commuters.

Detective Sgt. Chris Leone, a state police crisis negotiator, said Reed surrendered after police gave him a signed assurance that the child would not be harmed.

Police recovered a "very realistic" toy gun and baseball bat from the SUV. Reed's companion, Monica Hayman, 31, and their year-old son, Johnny L. Reed V, were unharmed. Police said the woman was not held against her will.

Charges were pending.

Col. Rick Fuentes, the state police superintendent, said the child was in "very, very good condition" after being examined by doctors at Cooper University Medical Center in Camden. The boy was in the custody of social services officials.

Officials did not characterize the suspect's mental state. After he was taken to the state police station in Bellmawr, reporters waiting for a news briefing could hear him talking to himself in an adjacent room.

"He made a lot of references to how he was being persecuted by the federal government," said Leone. "He thought he was being tracked by certain vehicles. He wanted to speak to Michelle Obama. He wanted to air his grievances and what he thought his problems were to her."

Television footage of the standoff showed the white SUV, its rear hazard lights flashing, halted at in the middle of the 3,500-foot bridge, surrounded by police cars. Shortly before the standoff ended, an armored police vehicle pulled up bumper-to-bumper facing the vehicle, and SWAT officers were positioned behind it.

The incident began when a state trooper tried to stop the vehicle for speeding in the northbound lanes of Route 42 about 4:30 p.m.

"The driver began driving erratically, so we broke off the pursuit for public safety reasons," said Sgt. Stephen Jones, a spokesman.

A few minutes later, the driver stopped on the bridge, and got out of his car.

"He had a baseball bat in one hand and a baby in his arm," said Vincent Borrelli, chief of Delaware River Port Authority Police. "He was swinging the bat at cars."

After he struck two cars, police closed the bridge to traffic.

At one point, he threatened to jump off the bridge, police said. He also said his vehicle contained explosives.

Long lines of cars stretched across the bridge in both directions. Authorities eventually allowed cars to make U-turns to clear the bridge.

State police said the man had visited the Bellmawr barracks on Easter Sunday with a nonspecific complaint, and the state troopers referred him to his local police department.

The blockage caused massive traffic congestion on both sides of the river.

In Philadelphia, state police closed the Schuylkill Expressway at Interstate 676 before moving the road closure to Passyunk Avenue. Major arteries in New Jersey backed up and commuters had to seek alternate bridges.

The bridge was reopened at 8:45 p.m.