Ford F-250 Faces Forfeiture After Shorewood Man's 3rd DUI Arrest

JOLIET, IL — One month after 33-year-old Shorewood resident Joseph Porcaro was arrested by Joliet police on felony aggravated DUI charges, Will County prosecutors have filed a civil forfeiture case intending to take away Porcaro's 2020 Ford F-250 truck from him.

A court hearing on the matter has been set for Jan. 11. On the criminal side, prosecutors have charged Porcaro with aggravated DUI as a third offense, plus unlawful possession of a controlled substance, cocaine, and aggravated battery.

After his DUI arrest by Joliet police on Nov. 5, Porcaro is accused of kicking one Joliet officer and also throwing a plastic urinal, striking another officer.

According to the forfeiture complaint, a Joliet police officer on Jefferson Street saw Porcaro's 2020 Ford F-250 truck blow the red light at Larkin Avenue and Jefferson, almost colliding with her squad car and another car driving alongside her.

The officer activated her squad car's blue and red lights and noticed Porcaro kept on driving at a high rate of speed along southbound Larkin, court records show. Porcaro finally stopped his truck on Meadow Avenue after "crossing over the turning lanes and (having) struck the curb with the right rear tire," the forfeiture noted.

When the officer asked for his driver's license and insurance card, Porcaro "opened the center console and proceeded to try to hand Officer Espinosa a multi-colored cannabis pipe," court documents state. "Joseph Porcaro's eyes were bloodshot and speech was slurred."

When a second Joliet officer arrived, Porcaro refused to tell police his name or date of birth; and that's when he was put under arrest, court files state. When Joliet police searched Porcaro's clothes, they found "an off-white rock -like substance in Joseph Porcaro's pocket, which later tested positive for cocaine," the forfeiture reflected.

Porcaro has retained downtown Joliet lawyer Joel Murphy of Joel Murphy & Associates as his defense counsel. Patch has left a message seeking comment from Murphy.

The forfeiture asks a Will County judge to order Porcaro's 2020 Ford truck be sold at a public auction, be given to a police department within Illinois or have it destroyed.

According to court records, Porcaro's previous DUI convictions occurred on March 5, 2013, in Will County and July 19, 2014, also in Will County.

Related Joliet Patch coverage:

Shorewood Man With Cocaine Faces Felony DUI Charges: Joliet Police