February 15, 2019 – A Delaware County Grand Jury has returned an indictment against 53-year-old Joseph Rice, of Westerville.
Charges come after Rice was observed to be masturbating in his mail truck in a Genoa Township subdivision on December 4, 2017.
“A mother and her young daughter were out for an afternoon walk in their neighborhood when they came upon the mail truck that delivers to their area,” said Delaware County Prosecutor Carol O’Brien. “The mother reports that the door of the vehicle was open and she could see Mr. Rice inside, holding a cell phone with one hand and appearing to masturbate with the other.”
Rice is charged with public indecency – a fifth-degree felony. The indictment against Rice states that he has previously been convicted or pleaded guilty to two similar violations, one in 2002 and the other in 2006.
An arraignment date for Rice is not yet set.