cops create huge 16 hour traffic jam by closing baseline road to investigate shooting Original Article Carjack suspect dies; officer hurt Pursuit that began in Phoenix leads to 16-hour shutdown of Tempe road Sarah Muench The Arizona Republic Feb. 10, 2006 12:00 AM A Phoenix police officer is recovering after being shot during a serpentine chase that began in central Phoenix and ended in the shooting death of a carjacking suspect in Tempe. The shooting left a main Tempe artery shut down all day Thursday, hampering both the morning rush hour and the evening commute. Baseline Road remained closed between Priest Drive and 48th Street for more than 16 hours as investigators worked a crime scene that stretched nearly a mile. At least 11 Phoenix police officers opened fire on 24-year-old Antonio Lozada, who shot 29-year-old Phoenix Officer Mike Edgemon in the leg, Tempe police Sgt. Dan Masters said. Investigators spent the day interviewing several dozen witnesses, mainly police officers, and sorting through two shooting scenes, gunshot rounds and a stolen vehicle. As police conducted their investigation near Interstate 10 and a major resort, area businesses and customers grunted at the inconvenience, and drivers were forced to use alternate routes throughout the day. Scottsdale resident Jason Hjerpe walked a cart full of purchases from Fry's Electronics down the sidewalk to his car that was parked nearly a quarter of a mile away. Cheryl and Justin Decker of Chandler said they should have been notified of the street closure. "We've been going around and around trying to get in," Cheryl said. "We almost gave up." A strip center of mom-and-pop businesses near 48th Street and Baseline Road also felt the crunch. Emily Bratko, owner of Mr. Ship and Check, a shipping store, said business was slower than normal Thursday. "It's hard on all our businesses on the strip," she said. Police said the incident began when Lozada forced people out of a Lincoln Navigator shortly after midnight Thursday morning in the 2900 block of North 16th Street, leaving them with minor injuries. Lozada fired a shot and then fled; Juan Pablo Suniga, 25, his accomplice, followed in a green Dodge Durango, police said. That launched a police pursuit that led to 35th Avenue and Bethany Home Road, where Lozada dumped the Navigator and jumped into the Durango, police said. From there, the two drove through Sky Harbor International Airport and into Tempe and stopped again in the 2200 block of West 14th Street, near Broadway Road and 52nd Street. Police said Suniga bailed out and was arrested without incident. Lozada continued into Tempe to Priest Drive and Baseline Road, where he shot Edgemon, a seven-year police veteran who was putting down a Stop Stick to try and slow the stolen car, police said. Lozada's car came to a halt at Pointe Parkway and Baseline Road, west of Interstate 10. Police say he refused to drop his gun, pointed it at officers and was fatally shot by the 11 police officers at about 1 a.m. Edgemon was taken to Maricopa Medical Center, where he underwent surgery and was recovering, police said.