By Shavonne Walker

shavonne.walker@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — A Kannapolis man led police on an early-morning car and subsequent foot chase through the city after an officer tried to stop him for an expired license plate.

The Salisbury Police Department charged Julian Dwanas Smith, 27, of the 1200 block of Sears Street, Apartment C, with misdemeanor resisting, obstructing or delaying an officer; misdemeanor operating a vehicle on a highway with an expired tag; misdemeanor driving while license revoked; misdemeanor reckless driving; misdemeanor failure to stop at a stoplight; and felony fleeing to elude arrest.

An officer spotted Smith’s 2009 Chevrolet Impala, checked the license plate and found that it had expired Jan. 31, 2015. The officer checked the driver’s license and found that it had been suspended for failure to appear in court on a previous charge. The officer tried to pull the vehicle over, but Smith accelerated.

The driver led the officer onto North Main Street, to West Lafayette Street, then onto North Fulton and West Innes streets. He reached speeds of 70 mph in a 35-mph zone, a report said.

He ended up at Jake Alexander Boulevard and South Main Street near Sunset Drive. Smith lost control of his vehicle, crashed into a ditch and took off on foot into a wooded area.

Officers caught Smith a short time later.

He has since been released from the Rowan County jail under a $5,000 secured bond.

Contact reporter Shavonne Walker at 704-797-4253.