Wrong-Way Freeway Driver Fleeing Cops Hits Semi, Snarls Traffic During Rush Hour

A few New Times employees were among the thousands of commuters stuck in an epic traffic jam this morning on Interstate 10, and so we pass along these cell-phone photos as a way to commiserate. The wreck was caused by a burglary suspect fleeing Tempe police who drove the wrong...

By Ray Stern

May 20, 2009

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "18478561",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "16759093",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "17980324",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "16759092",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "17980324",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 24
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "16759094",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 24
        }
      ]

A few New Times employees were among the thousands of commuters stuck in an epic traffic jam this morning on Interstate 10, and so we pass along these cell-phone photos as a way to commiserate.

The wreck was caused by a burglary suspect fleeing Tempe police who drove the wrong way on the freeway and smacked head-on into a semi. The suspect is in bad shape, but a woman with him will reportedly survive. The semi-truck driver and his passenger were slightly injured.

The collision occurred at about 7 a.m. and spewed wreckage all over the freeway, forcing lane closures that turned the blacktop into molasses for morning commuters.

Jasmine Hobeheidar, (NT's assistant art director, blog-post-idea-contributor and cell-phone photographer), tells us her normal 20-minute drive to 12th Street and Jefferson took an hour.

It was definitely a good morning to be taking the light-rail to Phoenix.

Become A Member

BEFORE YOU GO...
Can you help us continue to share our stories? Since the beginning, Phoenix New Times has been defined as the free, independent voice of Phoenix — and we'd like to keep it that way. Our members allow us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls.

Ray Stern is the former news editor of Phoenix New Times. He worked as a newspaper reporter in Arizona for more than two decades. He's won numerous awards for his reporting, including the Arizona Press Club's Don Bolles Award for Investigative Journalism.