Former DeWitt cop pleads no contest in incident involving newspaper delivery driver

Correction: This story has been changed to reflect that the defendant pleaded no contest. An earlier version included incorrect information about type of pleas he entered.

ST. JOHNS — A former city of DeWitt police officer who was charged with felonious assault after following and pulling a gun on a Black newspaper delivery driver while off-duty in early 2021 has pleaded no contest to two misdemeanor charges, the state Attorney General's Office said.

Chad Vorce, 46, has resigned from the police department and surrendered his police officer certification, Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a Thursday afternoon news release.

He pleaded no contest to willful neglect of duty and aggravated assault in 29th Circuit Court, she said.

"This now-former officer posed a danger to his community on the morning he drew his gun on a newspaper delivery employee," she said in the release. "In this plea agreement we prioritized both the officer's resignation and the surrender of the MCOLES certification as a matter of public safety and public trust in law enforcement, as well as the concerns and wishes of the victim in this assault."

Ordered to stand trial: Judge orders DeWitt police officer to stand trial for chasing, pulling gun on Black delivery driver

Arbitration: DeWitt police officer who pulled gun on Black delivery driver reinstated by arbitrator

The original offense: DeWitt police officer fired for off-duty excessive force, pulling gun on delivery driver

An attorney for Vorce could not immediately be reached for comment. Online court records indicated there was action in the case on Thursday but did not reflect that pleas were entered.

The incident involving the delivery driver happened in January 2021 after Vorce saw a "suspicious" Black man in a van driving erratically in Vorce's DeWitt Township neighborhood, according to police reports.

Vorce followed the van out of the neighborhood and drew his gun on the man, who was delivering the Lansing State Journal, on Driftwood Drive, near Airport Road, Nessel's news release said. He pulled a gun on the man a second time in a gas station parking lot, the attorney general said.

Vorce was fired the following May but was later reinstated by an arbitrator, although he didn't immediately resume law enforcement duties because his license hadn't been reactivated, the State Journal reported in January 2022.

Vorce was ordered to stand trial on charges of felonious assault, misconduct in office and a felony firearms enhancement after a preliminary hearing in July 2022.

Prosecutors said Vorce had no authority to follow Alexander Hamilton, the then-19-year-old driver, nor to pull his gun on him. 

Vorce told police during the investigation he thought Hamilton was trying to ram him with his van. An attorney who represented him in that hearing said Vorce was acting as a private citizen but was unable to turn off the training he had as a police officer.

No-contest pleas are not a formal admission of guilt but are treated as a conviction for sentencing purposes.

Court records indicated the case was scheduled for trial on Sept. 19. Both charges to which Vorce pleaded no contest are misdemeanors punishable by up to a year in jail. Judge Cori Barkman set sentencing for Oct. 16, the AG's office said.

Contact Ken Palmer atkpalmer@lsj.com. Follow him on Twitter @KBPalm_lsj.