A registered sex offender who was out of compliance with registration requirements has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after he was caught viewing child sexual abuse material on a tablet at a Chicago Public Library branch in Bucktown last year, according to court records.
David Rideout, 51, was taken into custody around 6 p.m. on September 15, 2025, after a woman called 911 to report that a man was viewing child pornography inside the Bucktown-Wicker Park Branch, 1701 North Milwaukee Avenue.
Responding officers found Rideout seated with a black tablet displaying an image of a naked underage girl in a graphic sexual position, according to a CPD police report. A library employee told investigators that surveillance footage showed Rideout holding the tablet and viewing images of naked underage girls, the report said.
During their investigation, officers learned that Rideout was not compliant with sex offender registration requirements and that he was wanted on an extraditable warrant issued in Kane County. The tablet was turned over to CPD’s Special Investigations Unit. A search warrant executed on the device revealed hundreds of images and videos involving children under the age of 13, according to prosecutors.
Rideout’s profile on the Illinois State Police sex offender registry indicated that he was required to register as a sex offender for life. He had previously been convicted in Sangamon County of sexually abusing a 6-year-old when he was 36.
Court records show that Rideout pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of child pornography involving victims younger than 13. Judge Domenica Stephenson sentenced him to 10 years on each count, to be served consecutively. Under Illinois law, people convicted of those offenses can receive an automatic 50% reduction in their prison sentences for good behavior. As a result, Rideout is scheduled for release in September 2035, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.
