Bellmont, Ill. (ECWd) –
The Village of Bellmont is in Wabash County, in southern Illinois, and has a population of around 247 people.
Mayor Linda Johnson decided to hire Matthew M. Berberich to perform various maintenance and other manual labor work around the village.
Based on public records, Matthew M. Berberich is listed on the Illinois State Police Offender Registry as convicted aggravated criminal sexual abuse, victim 13<18, lifetime registrant, failure to report. Wabash County court records show 2023 conviction for Failure to Report Annually, a Class 3 felony, with a later sentence to five years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Two Village Trustees, Barbara Bruce and Peggy Walling, have made a public statement indicating that this hiring decision was made solely by the mayor and without village board approval.
While he is not prohibited from obtaining gainful employment, there are certain statutory restrictions he has on where he can go/work.
Restrictions on registered offenders can be found here: https://www.ilga.gov/Documents/legislation/ilcs/documents/072000050K11-9.3.htm
It is our understanding that a majority of the trustees will hold a public meeting in the coming days to discuss this issue.
Read more here.
WSJD reported in 2024 that Bellmont was to receive a $600,000 grant from the State of Illinois for their municipal park land acquisition and development.
One Response
If you did your research, you would find that the recidivism rate for sex offenders is only 3-5%. The victim in this case was not a “child or baby”, but rather a teen. His latest arrest was for a failure to report, not an actual sex offense. I find no reason why this man could not hold a job with the Village of Bellmont and the fact that his employment will be a big help in his ability to find housing and maintain a stable life and not reoffend. Offenders without a job or a support system are much more likely to reoffend. Let’s help this man stay gainfully employed and get on with his life. I thought everyone deserves a second chance.