Hearing for Man Charged Stealing, Crashing Car in Oil City Set for Wednesday

| May 3, 2021

VENANGO CO., Pa. (EYT) – A hearing is scheduled for Wednesday for a Franklin man who allegedly stole and crashed a woman’s car in Oil City.

Court documents indicate a preliminary hearing for 38-year-old Joseph Law was continued on April 21 and is scheduled to resume at 8:30 a.m. on Wednesday, May 5.

He faces the following charges:

– Theft By Unlawful Taking-Movable Property, Felony 3
– Receiving Stolen Property, Felony 3
– Unauthorized Use Motor/Other Vehicles, Misdemeanor 2
– Possession of Controlled Substance, Misdemeanor
– Use/Possession Of Drug Paraphernalia, Misdemeanor
– Accident Damage To Unattended Vehicle Or Property, Summary (two counts)
– Driving License Suspended/Revoked Pursuant to Section 3802/1547B1, Summary

Law is currently lodged in the Venango County Jail on $15,000.00 monetary bail.

The charges stem from an incident in Oil City in September 2020.

Details of the case:

According to a criminal complaint, around 4:29 a.m. on September 20, 2020, Oil City Police were dispatched to Colbert Avenue for a report of a motor vehicle accident.

At the scene, officers found a crashed vehicle with no one inside or in the immediate area. Police then ran the plate to find the owner’s information.

A check of the inside of the vehicle discovered a cell phone on the floor of the driver’s side, and in the back of the phone was a cardholder with a debit card belonging to Joseph Law. In the passenger side of the vehicle, police found a backpack that contained documents belonging to Joseph Law, as well as multiple methamphetamine pipes, a jar with suspected methamphetamine residue, and a stamp bag, the complaint states.

Officers spoke to the owner of the vehicle, who stated no one was given permission to use her vehicle, and it should still be in front of her house. The victim also told police that Law was at her home earlier in the night but had left with a known woman, the complaint states.

On September 27, police spoke to the above-mentioned woman about the incident. She reported that she had been at the victim’s residence with Law and did not feel comfortable there, so she had called a friend to pick her up. She noted that Law left the house with her, but when she got into her friend’s vehicle, she saw Law get into the victim’s vehicle and drive it away, according to the complaint.

Law was arraigned in front of Magisterial District Judge Andrew F. Fish at 1:45 p.m. on March 16.


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