Metro East Sun

Illinois State Police arrested Alorton Mayor Jo Ann Reed following a grand jury Indictment for felony official misconduct/performance of a forbidden act, a Dec. 16 posting on the Edgar County Watchdogs' (ECW) website said.

ECW, which has reported on several previous legal actions involving Reed, did not have further details about the nature of the charge, but noted that Reed was indicted for knowingly performing an act that she knew was against the law. The date of the offense, as listed on the case file, is Sept. 8, according to the posting.

The posting included Reed’s past brushes with the law, including a felony conviction for smuggling a cellphone into the Alorton jail for her incarcerated niece in 2013 while serving as mayor, according to a report from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Reed had her felony record expunged, allowing her to hold public office, but has since been indicted for a felony violation of the election code. ECW could not ascertain the status of that case.

Kirk Allen and John Kraft, co-founders of the Edgar County Watchdogs | https://www.watchdog.org/illinois/unsung-hero-illinois-watchdogs-are-raising-a-racket-over-local/article_0f19e6c1-d6fa-5567-8a2c-b3c665f017c6.html

The ECW posting also highlighted that Reed was involved in a shouting match with a citizen seeking to attend a Cahokia Water District meeting, resulting in Reed attempting to obtain a protective order against her and filing a report of disorderly conduct.