BOISE, Idaho — A former Boise School District principal is facing a new felony charge for Injury to Child related to an incident in 2022.
Christopher Ryan was previously facing several misdemeanors accused of failing to report child abuse and injury to a child. The misdemeanor case was dismissed in September, a few weeks before the new felony indictment.
Ryan has been on paid administrative leave with the Boise School District since May.
RELATED | Third lawsuit accuses Boise School District of failing to report abuse of students
The grand jury indictment accuses Ryan of willfully permitting a 13-to-14-year-old student to be placed in a situation that would endanger her health while having care and/or custody of the child, by "allowing unsupervised contact with the child and an adult male while at school while having notice that the adult male was behaving in a way that was inappropriate and/or unlawful toward the child."
Three ongoing federal lawsuits accuse Ryan, Fairmont Junior High, and the Boise School District of mishandling concerns of abuse involving the school's social worker, Scott Crandell, who died by suicide last December after police began investigating. The lawsuits accuse Crandell of inappropriate communication with minor students and sexually abusing multiple young girls at the school while working in his role as a social worker.
Ryan was the principal at Fairmont Junior High at the time.
The latest lawsuit alleges all defendants failed to investigate, document, report, or inform others about the allegations brought to their attention over the course of several months, nor did they take action to ensure Crandell was not meeting alone with young girls at the school.
Crandell was accused of regularly pulling female students out of class and into his office with the door shut and blinds closed — accusations we've seen outlined in other public documents and behavior the new lawsuit repeats was seen by teachers and staff and reported to Principal Ryan.
Ryan's attorney previously told Idaho News 6 his client plans to plead not guilty and will "vigorously defend himself against any claim that he has done anything wrong."
The Boise School District declined to comment on pending litigation but shared a statement with Idaho News 6 that says in part, "We want our community to know that we take any such claims very seriously and want to make it clear that we are committed to providing a safe and inclusive learning environment for all of our students."
Ryan will be arraigned in Ada County on October 18.
