Cairo Association of Teachers - Newsletter

CAT Tracks for July 21, 2007 PERP WALK

From the Southern Illinoisan...

Former regional superintendent of schools sentenced to six years

BY BECKY MALKOVICH, THE SOUTHERN

BENTON - Former regional superintendent of schools Barry Kohl shared a tearful kiss with his wife before he was led handcuffed from the Franklin County Courthouse Friday to begin serving a six-year prison term.

Kohl, who headed the Franklin-Williamson Regional Office of Education for more than 12 years before his 2006 resignation, was sentenced by Judge Thomas Sutton after an April plea agreement in which Kohl pleaded guilty to theft by deception, theft over $300, three counts of official misconduct and one count of bribery.

As a convicted felon, Kohl, who was superintendent of Franklin County schools before the two counties merged their offices, will also lose his pension, Franklin County State's Attorney Tom Dinn said.

"He has lost everything he has worked for in the past 17 years. Not only has he lost financially, but he lost his reputation as well," Dinn said. "He has nothing at this point."

He also was ordered to pay costs and fees, $4,964 in restitution and to undergo DNA testing.

Kohl must serve a minimum of three years in prison, said Dinn, whose charge of bribery against Kohl in April brought a swift guilty plea, ending years of legal maneuvering.

"I'm fairly content with (the sentence)," Dinn said. "I'm happy to have gotten the opportunity to finally put an end to this tortured saga, one of the most distasteful episodes in Franklin County history.

"I had two objectives with this case: One was to see Barry Kohl go to prison and the other was that we wouldn't still be talking about this next year. It's finally over," Dinn said.

Kohl was taken directly from court to Franklin County Jail where he will await transport to an Illinois Department of Corrections facility to be determined.

Kohl's fall from grace as one of the most popular politicians in both counties started in 2003 when an audit by Illinois Auditor General William Holland questioned more than $160,000 in expenditures by the ROE. The audit was then referred to Attorney General Lisa Madigan by the auditor general after more than 17 findings were reported.

An 18-month investigation by the AG's office resulted in the August 2004 arrests on a 62-count indictment of Kohl, his wife, Janine, Mary Anne Adams and Suzanne Willmore, all of whom were employed by the ROE.

Among the allegations in the indictment were the submission of bogus travel vouchers by the Kohls and reimbursement for their personal expenses.

The indictment also alleged the couple committed perjury before the grand jury and attempted to get Adams and Willmore to do the same to cover up illegal activities.

Adams was charged with three counts of perjury and a single count of conspiracy, while Willmore entered into a plea agreement in January 2006, pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of attempted perjury. In exchange for the lesser charge, Willmore agreed to testify against the other three defendants if the case went to trial.

Janine Kohl and Adams later pleaded guilty to reduced charges and received probation.

The initial cases were prosecuted by the AG's office. The bribery charge filed by Dinn in April came about after he learned that the AG's office had struck an immunity deal with Adams and another ROE employee, Judy Davis, for grand jury testimony on the bribery matter.

Dinn said the bribery charge stemmed from a kick-back scheme implemented by Kohl, Adams and Davis. Upwards of $60,000 was pocketed as a result of the scheme, he said.

Scott Mulford, spokesman for the AG's office, said the case shows what can happen when public officials betray the public trust.

"I think it can be said that for people who place their trust in public officials and expect them to carry out their duties in a fair and honest way, they were disappointed in Mr. Kohl," he said. "Now, Mr. Kohl's disposition should show that disappointing the people who elect them can come with a big price."