The Eleanor Roosevelt High School principal charged with failing to tell police about suspected child abuse by a teacher investigated the allegations on his own and — in violation of the law — kept quiet after deciding no crime had occurred, a Riverside County sheriff’s investigator said.
Gregory Ryan Anderson, 44, has been charged with one count of being a mandated reporter failing to report suspected child abuse, a misdemeanor. The Eastvale principal could face six months in custody if convicted as charged. Anderson is scheduled to enter a plea on March 21. He is not in custody.
School and school district employees, administrators and coaches are all mandated reporters, according to the California Department of Education, and required by law to report reasonable suspicions or knowledge of child abuse to “an appropriate local law enforcement or county child welfare agency.”
A similar case unfolded two years ago at Wilmer Amina Carter High School in San Bernardino County’s Rialto Unified School District.
In 2022, two assistant principals and a counselor were accused of violating mandated reporter laws, after allegations of a 17-year-old boy sexually assaulting 15- and 16-year-old girls were not reported to authorities. Rather than face jail time, the employees were required to complete mandated reporter and child abuse prevention classes, commit no crimes in the following year and check in with the court to show compliance.
Anderson is on paid administrative leave from the Corona-Norco Unified School District. He was Roosevelt’s assistant principal from 2013 to 2019, and returned as principal in February 2021, spokesperson Brittany Foust said. His salary is $196,976. Between his two tenures at Roosevelt, Anderson was principal of Rialto’s Carter High, according to school documents.
The investigator, Juan L. Andrade, wrote in a sworn affidavit written to obtain an arrest warrant for Anderson that he determined that over more than one year, from November 2021 to January 2023, Anderson received emails or other communications from parents alleging that Roosevelt theater director Chad Costello had inappropriate interactions with students.
Costello was arrested in November and pleaded not guilty to seven felony child abuse counts.
But Anderson, who acknowledged to the investigator that he had been trained in the mandated reporter law, took it upon himself to decide Costello’s guilt instead of reporting suspicions as required, the investigator wrote.
“By his own admission, Anderson determined through the investigation that Costello’s behavior was not criminal,” Andrade wrote. “However, based on the information gathered, Costello’s behavior was criminal or warranted a notification to law enforcement to investigate. Anderson never sought advice from law enforcement or (Child Services Division) regarding the disclosures or complaints. Most importantly, there is a School Resource Officer assigned to ERHS who would (have) been a point of contact to seek advice regarding Costello’s reported behavior.”
The Corona-Norco district said in a news release that it learned of the abuse allegations April 11, 2023, the same month that Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said investigators visited the school to investigate the allegations against Costello, who was immediately placed on administrative leave. His employment ended June 30.
Anderson’s attorney, Virginia Blumenthal, said Wednesday, Feb. 21, that some complaints authorities assert were made to Anderson were never actually said. She also said some of the allegations Anderson learned about were not crimes. She called Anderson an excellent principal who cares about students.
“I don’t think there is sufficient evidence to prove anything that they have alleged,” Blumenthal said.
The investigation into Anderson began when those who had complained about Costello alleged that the principal did not take action.
The affidavit detailed the contents of emails and other communications that the investigator said were sent to Anderson.
The first email to Anderson, dated Nov. 28, 2021, alleged that Costello was grooming students, including a boy, for inappropriate relationships, and that Costello sent students text messages discussing underwear and testicles, the affidavit states.
The second, from Dec. 21, 2021, included images of Costello in an “unprofessional state,” the investigator wrote.
The third, sent June 11, 2022, was sent to a school administrator and forwarded to Anderson. It alleged two students were having an inappropriate relationship with Costello and that he left campus with a student and stood too close to students.
The fourth, dated Jan. 21, 2023, went to a district administrator. The email said Costello used sexually explicit songs and plays and added that Anderson had done nothing in response to complaints.
The fifth, from Jan. 23, 2023, and sent to that same administrator, detailed “tribulations,” the investigator wrote, in a relationship with Costello. That person said she also told Anderson that two students were having an inappropriate relationship with Costello.
The school and district administrators are identified in the arrest declaration and do not appear to have been charged with crimes.
The investigator wrote that Anderson successfully passed mandated reporter training in 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2022.
“The suspect, Gregory Anderson, has demonstrated his inability to protect children at the Eleanor Roosevelt High School by not providing information regarding a teacher who had inappropriate interactions with two students,” Andrade wrote. “Parents and students continuously provided information regarding the teacher’s criminal behavior to Anderson, who failed to protect and notify law enforcement.”
Corona-Norco Superintendent Sam Buenrostro said employees complete annual mandated reporting training, which includes video sessions, in line with state law, and receive informational handbooks. The handbook includes several pages of guidelines for when and how to report alleged abuse or neglect.
“Right now, (the district is) conducting a thorough review of our protocols and existing protocols,” Buenrostro said, to ensure that requirements are clear and being followed.
“We’re certainly not immune to these types of behaviors,” he said, and the district is prepared to dedicate the resources to “constantly do better.”
Buenrostro said accountability, “and not making excuses,” is important.
Moving forward, he said, “I would probably want to reinforce our commitment to student safety.”
The night of Anderson’s arrest on Friday, Feb. 9, Buenrostro said a meeting with district principals was held, and officials have since visited the high school to follow up with employees. Current practices and follow up trainings were discussed, he said, and crisis counselors were available at Roosevelt on Feb. 13 for students and adults. The arrest shocked some, he said.
Roosevelt’s interim principal is Alexis Barile, who was the district’s administrative director of student services.
Corona-Norco school board President Chris Raahauge said Monday, Feb. 12, that he didn’t have more information about the accusations and hadn’t received complaints from parents or faculty about Anderson failing to report possible abuse.
Raahauge said he wants to “see how the legal process plays out” but that, if there was a violation, Anderson should be held accountable.
Roosevelt parent Dionne Contreras, whose daughter is a sophomore, said she’s been following the situation.
As an educator, Contreras said she knows there can be gray areas in terms of what should be reported and can sympathize with Anderson. Contreras wondered if the school should retrain its staff and said she thinks students should be educated, both about this incident and on how to look for warning signs of inappropriate behaviors.
However, she added, “what’s concerning is this is the third arrest since 2022.”
In April 2022, teacher Amanda Quinonez was arrested after an investigation found evidence that she “committed lewd acts with one male student, and distributed harmful matter to that student which included explicit photos of a sexual nature,” a Riverside County Sheriff’s Department release states. Quinonez has pleaded not guilty to several charges, and court records state that a settlement conference is set for March 20.
Before that, former track and field coach Joe Robles Jr. was arrested in 2019 and later charged with 15 counts of sexual assault, including rape, unlawful intercourse, and oral copulation with minors, who were Roosevelt students between 2014 and 2017. He was convicted and received a four-year prison sentence in 2020.
Costello’s next court date is scheduled for March 26, court records show.
Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Andrade at 951-955-1701.
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