Ryan Acts to Freeze Trust Fund for Girl X

Suit charges trustee transferred $46,591 for her person use

Illinois Atty. Gen. Jim Ryan sued Wednesday to remove Beverly Reed as the trustee of the fund she established to aid the crime victim known as Girl X, contending that she had transferred $46,591 for personal use.

Of the $312,000 collected in Reed's Girl X fund, Ryan's suit contends, only $1,225 has gone to the family of the Cabrini-Green girl who was assaulted in January.

Although Ryan's office doesn't yet know how Reed used the $46,951 mentioned in the suit - or if it all has been sent - "on its face it doesn't look right," Ryan said.

"I think it demands an accounting by the court," Ryan said during a news conference. "Very little of the money has gone where it was intended."

In an interview with the Tribune, Reed acknowledged last week that she paid herself a $20,000 administrative fee, while buying a 19-inch television, a VCR and school uniforms for Girl X.

The state is alleging that Reed wrote a $3,000 check to herself and transferred $43,591 to another account.

Ryan's suit, filed in Cook County Circuit Court against Reed and her WordSongs Ministry, alleged that Reed may have "violated her fiduciary responsibility" in her handling of the fund. Ryan's suit further contends that Reed is unfit to serve as trustee because she was untruthful about her criminal past.

Ryan got a portion of what he wanted Wednesday afternoon when Circuit Judge Thomas Durkin entered a temporary restraining order freezing the fund established by Reed.

Reed could not be reached for comment Wednesday. Her attorney, Ralph Bernstein, acknowledged that Reed had removed money from the fund to defray her expenses.

"The question is are they reasonable expenses," said Bernstein. "If they are reasonable, then nobody has a reason to complain."

State officials say Reed is the only one with authority to move money from the Girl X account.

Beyond the $46,591 traced to Reed, Ryan's office detailed that additional money was transferred from the Girl X account: $1,800 went to WordSongs accounts for unknown purposes; $1,300 was removed in cash; $500 was paid to an attorney; and $600 went for rent.

The state suit was one of the three separate legal actions filed Wednesday concerning Girl X.

In a separate suit, attorneys for Belinda Bohlar, the mother of Girl X, also sought - and won - a freeze on the Girl X funds that Reed has raised.

"We have great concerns about the management of the money," Robert Clifford , who is representing Bohlar and the bank that serves as guardian for the Girl X estate, told Circuit Judge Benjamin Novoselsky.

With attorneys for all sides agreeing, Novoselsky approved freezing the funds, as well as transferring the money to American National Bank, where it would be re-deposited in investments that would earn more income.

Novoselsky also asked that attorneys for another Girl X fund - one operated by radio station WGCI-FM - meet with lawyers for the Girl X estate to coordinate handling of the funds.

Bernstein seemed to agree that was a good idea. He said he had contacted WGCI to "see if we can consolidate" the two funds.

"They don't want it at this point," Bernstein said. "It should be consolidated. There's no sense to have two funds."

Howard Berk, an attorney in the Cook County public guardian's office who helped WGCI establish its fund, said the radio station would "be interested in any suggestion that would safeguard or advance the best interests of Girl X."

Meanwhile, a third suit involving Girl X was also filed in Cook County Circuit Court by attorneys on behalf of the girl's mother. The suit filed against the Chicago Housing Authority and City of Chicago, alleges that security at Cabrini-Green was so lax that it constitutes "willful and wanton misconduct."

Spokesmen for both the city and CHA declined to comment, saying that they had not seen the complaint.

Lawyers from Ryan's office will be back in court Dec. 5 when the restraining order may be replaced by a more permanent measure.

Ryan's suit also alleges that when Reed registered her Girl X fund with the attorney general's office last March, she did not disclose that she had been convicted of three felonies, including insurance fraud and forgery.

The legal activity comes days after the disclosure in the Tribune that Ryan's office had subpoenaed documents from Illinois Service Federal Savings & Loan, where the money Reed has collected is being held in an account under the name WordSongs/Girl X Fund.

Reed has contended in a previous interview that the tense relationship that later developed between her and Bohlar had interfered with distributing more funds. Moreover, Reed said that some of the money she has paid herself was reimbursement for personal funds she spent.

Whatever her explanation, Reed has failed to provide documentation for her expenses despite repeated requests by the attorney general's office.

In addition to freezing the fund, Ryan's suit seeks an accounting of the money that Reed has collected.

"Then and only then will we have all the facts," Ryan said. "We want to make sure that no funds were converted to personal use and the money goes where it's supposed to go."