The Schuylkill County man who has twice been accused of interfering in the custody of his daughter in recent weeks appeared for a preliminary hearing on one of those incidents on Tuesday afternoon.
Ryan Frasnelli, 41, and homeless, appeared before District Magistrate Judge AJ Serina on Tuesday for a hearing on the second of those incidents that allegedly occurred last Wednesday in Orwigsburg.
Frasnelli is currently housed at Schuylkill County Prison on $25,000 bail for this incident. A preliminary hearing last week for a similar incident that occurred several weeks ago in the Schuylkill County Courthouse parking lot in Pottsville was continued last week until July 14.
During Tuesday’s hearing, Frasnelli’s ex-wife, Rachel Carusella, testified that she was at work last week when she received a phone call from one of her daughters that Frasnelli was in the driveway of their home on W. Market St. in Orwigsburg.
Frasnelli, she said, showed up “randomly” last Wednesday and ultimately drove away with his other daughter. Carusella testified that Frasnelli was under a court order that suspended his custody rights.
As Carusella returned home from work, Frasnelli had returned with his daughter.
Police in Orwigsburg were notified of Frasnelli’s alleged actions this evening and arrived on scene just after he’d driven off after returning his daughter, borough officer Robert Bechtel testified Tuesday.
Bechtel testified that he’d previously responded to an incident at this address on May 14 and ordered Frasnelli not to trespass on the property.
A short time later, Frasnelli was apprehended during a traffic stop on Greenview Dr. During a search, police say they found a small, clear baggie that contained a white residue. A test of that substance reportedly determined it was methamphetamine.
Defense attorney Chris Riedlinger attempted to get the charge of custody interference withdrawn by challenging the validity of the court order based on wording on paperwork issued by courts.
Riedlinger noticed that documents indicated a visitation schedule was to be followed but was not listed.
“A layperson could be confused by this,” he said. “He legitimately thought he could go see the child.”
He also noted a bail modification apparently made when his client’s first hearing on the initial custody incident was continued that took away the “no contact” contingency.
Serina said these issues were a matter for a jury and held the charges of custody interference, a felony, and defiant trespass, a misdemeanor, for Schuylkill County Court of Common Pleas.
Frasnelli was arraigned Tuesday on a charge of drug paraphernalia possession with a preliminary hearing to be scheduled.
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