Fleeing Parolee Crashes Into Squad Car, 'Several' Others: Police

WILMETTE, IL — An Evanston parolee crashed a stolen Cadillac into a police car and at least five other vehicles as he fled officers down Green Bay Road for nearly half a mile Wednesday, police said. There were no reports of injuries in any of the crashes triggered by the brief pursuit.

Mansfield Wallace, 48, of the 600 block of Case Street, was arrested and held pending an initial court hearing, according to Wilmette police. He faces as-yet undetermined criminal charges and traffic citations in connection with the incident.

Shortly before 5 p.m., police were dispatched to the Walgreens at 811 Green Bay Road after a store employee reported that a man matching Wallace's description had stolen various from the store, police said. The shoplifter was last seen headed into the store's parking lot, dispatchers had been told.

The first officer to arrive on the scene noticed someone matching the shoplifter's description in a black Cadillac and began checking the car's registration, according to police. As more officers arrived and got closer to the car, dispatchers notified them the car had been reported stolen from a neighboring jurisdiction.

Police said they began giving unspecified orders to the driver, but he disobeyed and accelerated out of the parking lot, striking a parked Wilmette squad car and another parked car in the lot before fleeing south on Green Bay Road.

The driver of the stolen car then ran a red light at the intersection of Green Bay Road and Linden Avenue, triggering a three-car crash, according to police. The Cadillac struck one other car, causing it to hit another car that had been stopped at the light.

Police said the driver then lost control and struck several more parked cars before officers took him into custody in the 400 block of Green Bay Road. The total number of vehicles struck by the Cadillac was not immediately available from police.

Records show Wallace was released on parole in September 2019 following a theft conviction the year before. He was taken to bond court in Skokie on Friday and charged with unlawful possession of a stolen motor vehicle, a class 1 felony; criminal damage to state-supported property, a class 3 felony; and class 4 felony retail theft.

Police said he stole a portable speaker, personal hygiene items, a package of underwear, t-shirts and socks from the store. Retail theft of under $300 worth of property is a class 4 felony for the second or subsequent offense.

Wallace was also charged with resisting a police officer, obstructing identification, leaving the scene of an accident, reckless driving and driving on a revoked license, all misdemeanors. He was also cited for operating an uninsured motor vehicle. Police said the car he was driving had been reported stolen from Skokie on Sunday.

According to the Illinois Department of Corrections, Wallace has more than a dozen prior felony convictions, dating back to a 1991 guilty plea to reduced charges in a drive-by shooting that wounded a 4-year-old girl.