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Massachusetts schools face accountability wave over teacher sexual abuse

Massachusetts schools face accountability wave over teacher sexual abuse

Rule Changes Boston, MA local

A new state law makes teacher-student sex with 16- and 17-year-olds a crime as civil suits target charter and private schools

August 31st, 2026: Boston.com reports on abuse accusations

Overview

Updated Sep 3

A former English teacher at Tyngsboro's Innovation Academy Charter School is accused of grooming a 14-year-old student starting in 2012. The lawsuit says he raped her repeatedly from 2015 to 2022. The victim, identified in court as Jane Jones No. 600, filed a civil suit on July 31 against teacher Ryan Deery and the school for negligence.

The case lands as Massachusetts schools face a wave of abuse allegations. A state law signed July 9 makes it a crime for teachers and coaches to have sex with 16- and 17-year-olds in their care. It is not retroactive, so Deery and others face civil suits rather than criminal charges for conduct under the old rules.

Why it matters

Teachers who have sex with 16- or 17-year-old students now face prison, and schools that miss the signs face negligence suits.

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Key Indicators

3
Major MA teacher abuse cases active in 2026
Deery (Tyngsboro), Rutledge (Miss Hall's), Tran (Lynn) cases are all active.
14
Age of victim when grooming began
Jane Jones was a freshman at Innovation Academy when the alleged grooming started.
2026-07-09
Age-of-consent loophole closed
Healey signed the budget July 9, making it a crime for teachers to have sex with 16- and 17-year-old students. Not retroactive.
39
States that already barred authority-figure sex
Massachusetts was late; 39 other states already had such laws, per the Boston Globe.

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People Involved

Ryan Deery
Ryan Deery
Former English teacher, Innovation Academy Charter School
Denies allegations; named as defendant in civil suit; suspended from Windham Woods School
 Jane Jones No. 600
Jane Jones No. 600
Former student, alleged victim
Filed civil suit against Deery and Innovation Academy
 Greg Orpen
Greg Orpen
Head of School, Innovation Academy Charter School
School investigating allegations; declined to answer detailed questions
RD
Ryan DeJoy
Head of School, Windham Woods School
Suspended Ryan Deery in late August 2026

Organizations Involved

Innovation Academy Charter School
Innovation Academy Charter School
Public charter school (grades 5-12)
Defendant in negligence suit; conducting internal investigation

A public charter school in Tyngsboro, Massachusetts serving approximately 600 students in grades 5-12.
Massachusetts Legislature
Massachusetts Legislature
State government
Passed Trusted Adults Act in July 2026

The state legislature passed the Trusted Adults Act as part of the state budget in July 2026.
WW
Windham Woods School
Private school (Windham, New Hampshire)
Suspended Ryan Deery in late August 2026

A private school in Windham, New Hampshire, where Ryan Deery worked until August 2026.

Timeline

2012 August 2026

12 events Latest: August 31st, 2026 · 1 week ago Showing 8 of 12
Tap a bar to jump to that date

  1. Boston.com reports on abuse accusations

    Latest News

    Story of the Tyngsboro case gains wider attention as school year begins.

  2. Innovation Academy responds to families

    Statement

    School calls allegations 'shocking,' says it had no prior knowledge, begins investigation.

  3. Judge allows pseudonym, impounds affidavit

    Legal

    Middlesex Superior Court Judge William Barrett grants ex-parte motions to protect victim identity.

  4. Deery suspended from Windham Woods School

    Statement

    The New Hampshire private school suspended Deery after learning of the lawsuit. Head of School Ryan DeJoy said he is barred from campus and from contacting students, families, and staff.

  5. Civil suit filed against Deery and Innovation Academy

    Legal

    Jane Jones No. 600 files complaint alleging grooming, harassment, assault, and rape.

  6. Healey signs budget closing age-of-consent loophole

    Legislation

    Gov. Maura Healey signed the fiscal 2027 budget July 9. It makes sex between mandated reporters and 16- or 17-year-olds under their authority a crime, with up to 20 years in prison.

  7. Tran charged with child rape in Lynn

    Legal

    Tymond Tran, former Lynn teacher, charged with rape of a 14-year-old student.

  8. Rutledge charged with 3 counts of rape

    Legal

    Berkshire Superior Court grand jury indicts Rutledge after testimony from 2 former students.

  9. Rutledge accused at Miss Hall's School

    Allegation

    Former history teacher Matthew Rutledge accused of sexually assaulting multiple students.

  10. Deery leaves Innovation Academy

    Employment

    Deery departs IACS for unknown reasons; hired at The Bromfield School in Harvard.

  11. Alleged rapes begin

    Allegation

    The lawsuit alleges Deery repeatedly raped and assaulted the victim from 2015 to 2022 at the Tyngsboro school and elsewhere.

  12. Grooming allegedly begins at Innovation Academy

    Incident

    Ryan Deery, 32, allegedly began grooming a 14-year-old freshman in the second semester of her 9th grade year.

Scenarios

1

Deery settles civil suit, school pays damages

Likely Resolves by Q2 2027

Discussed by: Plaintiff's attorney Carmen Durso; legal analysts following the case

Deery and/or Innovation Academy agree to a confidential settlement to avoid trial. The school's insurer likely pays out. This resolves the case without a public finding of liability, but sets a precedent for other victims to file similar claims against schools that employed teachers under the old age-of-consent law.

2

Deery case goes to trial, jury decides liability

Possible Resolves by End of 2028

Discussed by: Defense attorney Paul Robertson; plaintiff's attorney Carmen Durso

If settlement talks fail, the case proceeds to a civil trial. A jury would decide whether Deery abused the student and whether Innovation Academy was negligent in hiring, supervision, or response. The school's internal investigation findings could become evidence. A finding for the plaintiff could set a damages benchmark for similar cases.

3

Criminal charges filed despite statute of limitations

Unlikely Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Legal analysts; district attorneys offices in Middlesex and Essex counties

Although the Trusted Adults Act is not retroactive, prosecutors could pursue charges if they find evidence the abuse continued after the victim turned 16, or if other victims come forward with more recent allegations. The Deery case is civil now, but parallel investigations into other Massachusetts schools—like the Rutledge and Tran cases—show prosecutors are willing to pursue charges when evidence supports it.

4

First prosecution under the new age-of-consent law

Likely Resolves by End of 2027

Discussed by: Massachusetts district attorneys; education law firm Holland & Knight

The law took effect July 9, 2026. The first criminal case against a teacher or coach accused of sex with a 16- or 17-year-old student will test its scope, including the four-year close-in-age exception and the clause covering adults who once held authority over the minor.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

January 2002

Boston Globe Spotlight on Catholic Church abuse (2002)

The Boston Globe's Spotlight team published a series exposing decades of sexual abuse by Catholic priests and the church's systematic cover-up. The investigation revealed that Cardinal Bernard Law and other church leaders knew about abuse allegations but reassigned priests rather than removing them.

Then

Cardinal Law resigned in December 2002. The church paid over $85 million in settlements to victims in the Boston archdiocese alone.

Now

The investigation triggered a global reckoning with institutional sexual abuse and led to widespread reforms in how organizations handle abuse allegations.

Why this matters now

The current wave of Massachusetts school abuse cases follows the same pattern: institutions that failed to act on warnings are now facing legal and financial consequences. The Spotlight investigation established the template for holding institutions accountable.

November 2011

Penn State/Jerry Sandusky scandal (2011)

Former Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky was arrested on 52 counts of child sexual abuse. An investigation revealed that university officials, including head coach Joe Paterno, had been told of abuse as early as 1998 but failed to report it to authorities.

Then

Sandusky was convicted in 2012 and sentenced to 30-60 years. Penn State paid $109 million to victims and faced severe NCAA sanctions.

Now

The scandal led to the expansion of mandatory reporting laws and increased scrutiny of how institutions handle abuse allegations against authority figures.

Why this matters now

The Tyngsboro case raises similar questions about what school administrators knew and when. The Penn State case showed that institutional negligence can be as damaging as the abuse itself.

2015-2016

St. George's School abuse cases (2015)

Multiple former students of St. George's School, an elite Rhode Island boarding school, came forward alleging sexual abuse by faculty in the 1970s and 1980s. The school's headmaster and other officials had allegedly known about the abuse but failed to act.

Then

The school paid $15 million in settlements to 30 victims. The headmaster resigned in 2016.

Now

The case accelerated changes in state laws extending statutes of limitations for child sexual abuse claims and increased pressure on private schools to reform policies.

Why this matters now

The St. George's cases demonstrated that even elite institutions with resources to prevent abuse failed to do so. The Innovation Academy case follows a similar pattern: a teacher moving between schools without red flags being raised.

Sources

(9)
+3
Lowell Sun Boston.com Sokolove Law NBC Boston GBH The Boston Globe Holland & Knight The Berkshire Edge The Boston Globe