Update: SVSU president releases orders policy review over incident

KOCHVILLE TOWNSHIP, MI -- DaJuawn Wallace said he didn't stop immediately when prompted by police at 2 a.m. Feb. 19 because he was taught to pull into a well-lit and safe area before doing so.

The Detroit native who is a commuter student pursuing a master's degree at Saginaw Valley State University believes he did not commit a crime, since he pulled over in a Sam's Club parking lot about 1.5 miles up the road from where police activated their lights.

Update: Protest set to support SVSU student who went to well-lit area before stopping for police

The Saginaw County prosecutor's office disagrees, however. Wallace faces one felony count of fleeing and eluding.

Dash camera shows SVSU student facing felony 5 Gallery: Dash camera shows SVSU student facing felony

"I live in Detroit, and I know some people who were robbed by fake police officers," Wallace said. "I was taught to find a well-lit area to pullover in."

Wallace said he was making a store run to get medicine for his girlfriend when he saw headlights in his rearview mirror, accelerating behind him.

Wallace signaled and moved into the right lane to let the vehicle pass. The police car activated its lights and sirens to initiate a traffic stop.

"I was not speeding up, turning off my lights or trying to get away," said Wallace, 24.

Police dash-cam video shows Wallace sticking his hand out the window and signaling. He said he did so to show police that he was going to pull over in the Sam's Club parking lot.

Related:

'No attempt to pull over and stop'

Saginaw Valley State University Police Officer Leon Wilson wrote in his police report that he initiated a traffic stop on Wallace because his vehicle fit the description of a car that he observed driving on a sidewalk on the SVSU campus. Wilson lost sight of the vehicle.

"I was uncertain about the make and the model of the vehicle, but this vehicle looked like the same color and was leaving the immediate area," Wilson wrote.

Wilson reported that after he turned flashing lights at the intersection of Bay and Liberty, Wallace continued southbound at about 35 miles per hour as he approached Kochville Road.

"The driver made no attempt to pull over and stop. I observed the driver stick his hands out of the window a couple of times. I did not see the driver throw anything from the vehicle, though it was dark and the road was poorly lit," Wilson wrote.

Felony or misdemeanor?

Outside the Sam's Club, police arrested Wallace on a charge of felony fleeing and eluding.

"I feel that if I was an older individual, it wouldn't have been a problem," Wallace said. "I feel like if I was of a different sex, they would've probably thought that I was just trying to find somewhere safe to pull into."

Saginaw County Chief Prosecutor Christopher Boyd said that when a police officer in full uniform in a vehicle identified as an official police vehicle has directed a motorist to stop, the motorist must stop.

"You don't get a driver's license and get to pick what rules you are going to follow and what rules you are not going to follow," Boyd said.

Boyd also said that prosecution heard Wallace's reason for not immediately stopping and noted that he did not travel at a high rate of speed. For that reason, Boyd said, the prosecution decided to offer to dismiss the felony charge in exchange for a misdemeanor charge with a delayed sentence.

Wallace at a June 12 preliminary hearing in District Judge Terry Clark's courtroom, was offered attempted fourth-degree fleeing and eluding, a one-year misdemeanor with a delayed sentence - meaning that after he completes probation, the charges will be dismissed.

Wallace rejected the offer.

The deal is available for a reasonable amount of time, Boyd said.

Wallace said he has no interest in any deal of any sort short of dismissal.

"I'm very certain I can stay out of trouble for a year, but I question whether they think I can," Wallace said.

"Most people will say fine, thank you for not sending me to jail. Well, that will be detrimental to me.

"If I had to take a plea for a felony, I would be forced to resign my job, and I wouldn't be able to get financial aid, and I wouldn't be able to do anything with my degree. Even still with the misdemeanor."

Wallace is in a master's program for health administration and has a May 2016 graduation date.

"I feel like I didn't do anything wrong," he said. "I feel as if it's a way to get me on papers."

Boyd said he feels there is still room for discussion on this case.

Wallace's preliminary examination was reset for Thursday, July 9. If he does not accept a plea agreement by then, Clark will determine whether there is enough evidence to bind him over to trial in circuit court.

Bob Johnson is a reporter for MLive/The Saginaw News. Contact him at 989-395-3295, by email at bob_johnson@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter,Facebook or Google+.