Jury Finds Woman Guilty of RSP of a License Plate

A jury in Judge Kimbler's court found Danielle E. Schmolz, formerly of Hemlock Court in Brunswick, guilty of Receiving Stolen Property on Tuesday, November 15, 2011. Ms. Schmolz was indicted after police found a stolen temporary tag on her vehicle. The tag on Ms. Schmolz's vehicle had expired about a week before the other tag went missing. The stolen tag was from a vehicle in the same Brunswick apartment complex and was on a vehicle that was the same make and model as Ms. Schmolz's vehicle, but a different model year. Under Ohio law receiving stolen property in the form of a license plate or temporary tag is a fifth degree felony.

Although Ms. Schmolz initially told the police that the tag was hers and that she had purchased it in Medina, she changed her statement when the officer pointed out that the tag didn't match her vehicle's vehicle identification number. She then told the police that she had heard people talking about taking the tag but she declined to give the police officer investigating the theft the name of the people.

The trial started on Monday afternoon and concluded on Tuesday afternoon. The jury deliberated about an hour before reaching its verdict. Following the verdict, Judge Kimbler continued Ms. Schmolz's bond and ordered a pre-sentence investigation. Sentence will be imposed on January 5, 2012.