What did Matthew Reilly do? Former Rhode Island Republican faces child molestation charges

Matthew Reilly, a former Republican councilman from Cranston, Rhode Island, was arrested on multiple charges of child molestation on June 8, 2023. The legal guardian of a 12-year-old girl filed a complaint, leading to a month-long investigation, before finally busting the Matthgew in North Kingstown on Thursday.

The 41-year-old ex-councilman was arrested last month on May 15 when he was found passed out inside his car after smoking crack. Back then, Matthew was charged with possession of a controlled substance, and he later resigned from the Cranston City Council.

His arrest in May came about a week into the investigation involving the 12-year-old child, and according to court records, the alleged s*x abuse took place on May 3. The Cranston Police Department charged Matthew Reilly with first and second-degree child molestation and enticement of a person under the age of 16.

Joseph Ippolito, the District Court Judge, ordered for Matthew to be held in custody without bail. Cranston Police Chief, Col. Michael J. Winquist, said that the ex-councilman has also been ordered to undergo a competency hearing on June 15.

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Matthew Reilly has entered a not-guilty plea to molestation charges

Matthew Reilly’s attorney, Michael Lepizzera Jr., said that his client had entered a “not guilty” plea to the child molestation charges on Thursday during his court appearance. He said:

“With these types of charges, I can see the general public and even close friends instantaneously turning their back on Mr. Reilly and drawing knee-jerk conclusions.”

Lepizzera Jr. requested everyone to refrain from gossip and public ridicule and allow Matthew Reilly time for the legal process to unfold as per its normal course. He added that while they might not have a perfect justice system in the United States, he stated from his 30 years of experience as a lawyer that they have as near-perfect a judicial system as can exist in the country.

The ex- councilman's June 8 court appearance. (Image via WJAR)

Matthew’s lawyer asked everyone to trust the system to be the final adjudicator of the truth, and any other legal outcome.

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Matthew Reilly said he had been clean for 13 years

Last month, a passerby contacted the police after they thought they spotted Matthew Reilly, the first-term councilman, and lawyer, choking in a parking lot with his mouth agape. Responding officers reached the scene and found an unconscious Matthew behind the wheel. He had a crack pipe, paraphernalia drug, and a rock-like white substance around him back then.

Police released the bodycam footage of the discovery and arrest last month, where one officer could be seen testing the white substance found in Matthew’s residue-coated vehicle. It contained fentanyl.

During his earlier arrest, the former councilman denied having any substance on him at first but then admitted that he had purchased $100 worth of crack the previous day. He told officers that it was a relapse episode and noted that he was going through a turbulent divorce. Matthew also said that he had been clean for 13 years.

He faced one count of drug possession charge in May and was later arraigned in court with a bail commissioner before his quick release on bail.

Drugs found in Matthew Reilly's car last month. (Image via Cranston Police Department)

Matthew Reilly publicly spoke about his struggles with drug addiction for the first time in 2021 at a recovery event at Cranston City Hall. He shared that it was something he had kept private for a long time and went on to describe that, at one point, he had lost his everything to drugs.

He also revealed to the audience that in 2010 a stint in rehab had set him on the right path. Matthew said that as a politician, he hoped to use his visibility to inform others about the pros of sobriety.

However, following his arrest in May, Matthew Reilly’s law license was also suspended, and a special master had been appointed so that his existing clients were not abandoned. On May 17, two days after his arrest, Matthew was evicted from his law office and resigned from the City Council on the same day.