Labor law expert can testify at Hyde trial

A Lake County judge said Monday he will allow an expert on labor law to testify at the upcoming trial of a woman accused of stealing money from Island Lake village government.

Circuit Judge Fred Foreman said he believed the expert “may assist jurors in understanding the more complex issues” involved in the case against Sharon Hyde.

Hyde, 60, the wife of former mayor Thomas Hyde, is charged with collecting more than $100,000 in pay for hours she did not work over a 10-year-period as director of the village’s Creative Playtime day care center.

Although Foreman denied a request from prosecutors to bar the testimony of Benjamin Gehrt, he said Monday he may limit Gehrt’s testimony to specific issues such as time cards and regulations of the Fair Labor and Standards Act.

Assistant State’s Attorney Christen Bishop argued last week the defense already plans to call witnesses to testify concerning Hyde’s employment status, and anything Gehrt would say would be redundant.

But defense attorneys Charles Smith and Brian Smith successfully claimed Gehrt could illustrate the distinctions between a salaried employee, as they claim their client was, and one who is paid on an hourly basis as the state insists was the case with Hyde.

The trial is scheduled to begin April 25 and is expected to take at least five days.

Hyde, who is charged with theft of government funds and official misconduct, faces a mandatory prison sentence of six to 30 years if convicted.