Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Additional charges have been filed in the cases of two former St. Patrick’s Interparish School employees – Christopher Charles Chell, 46, and Ryan Michael Clemens, 41.

Chell, the Athletic Director and a Physical Education teacher at the school, was initially arrested on March 7 after a middle school student reported that Chell had initiated a romantic relationship with her, and Clemens, the Assistant Principal, was arrested on March 13 after investigators alleged that he had known about the relationship and had not reported it as required; in addition, investigators found that a student was harmed by Chell after Clemens learned about his alleged behavior toward multiple middle school girls, leading to a charge of child neglect against Clemens.

Since that time, multiple new charges have been filed against both men, and documents received by Alachua Chronicle in response to a public records request provide more details about the allegations and the new charges.

Original charges

According to the documents, Clemens had been employed by the school for about 4.5 years and was Athletic Director before being promoted to Assistant Principal about 18 months ago. When he became Assistant Principal, Chell became Athletic Director.

On February 20, a female 7th-grader at the school reported to Clemens that Chell had made inappropriate comments to another girl that made her uncomfortable. Specifically, the girl said, Chell had told the other girl that he could be her “secret boyfriend,” but they would have to keep it a secret and could not be “open” about the “relationship.”

Clemens allegedly decided to investigate the report himself without notifying either law enforcement or the Department of Children and Families (DCF). Clemens reportedly held a closed-door meeting with Chell and the victim, during which Chell said the report was not true and Clemens told the girl that he believed Chell, “one hundred percent.” 

However, the next day, Clemens was reportedly told by several adult employees of the school that Chell had said he did, in fact, ask the girl if he could be her secret boyfriend, but he was “kidding.” 

The Gainesville Police Department detective investigating the incident reported that surveillance video from the school supported the girl’s account of the entire interaction in which Chell allegedly asked the 7th-grader to be in a secret romantic relationship with him.

Later that same week, an adult employee reported to Clemens that Chell’s behavior with a middle school girl had made the employee “uncomfortable.” The employee said Chell had stood outside a classroom staring at the girl while she was taking a test, and when the employee tried to block Chell’s view, Chell moved so he could continue staring at the girl.

On February 23, Clemens reported the February 20 incident to DCF, including his conclusion that there had been no wrongdoing by Chell. According to the documents, both Chell and Clemens have referenced DCF’s refusal to investigate the incident as an indication that no wrongdoing had taken place.

A few days after Clemens first learned about Chell’s alleged behavior, three female 6th-graders requested a meeting with Clemens, and each of the girls reportedly said that Chell had behaved inappropriately with them, ranging from inappropriate statements to inappropriate touching. Clemens allegedly did nothing to protect the girls from Chell after this meeting and did not report this to DCF or law enforcement until after Chell was arrested; another girl was allegedly victimized by Chell during school hours the day after the three girls met with Clemens.

Clemens reportedly told the detective that he had seen written communications in Chell’s office that contained evidence relating to the case, but he said he threw away this evidence after Chell was fired.

Second victim

During the investigation of the initial allegations against Chell, Clemens reportedly told the detective that he believed Chell was “targeting” one of the three girls who had requested the meeting and that Chell was “infatuated, keyed in on her.” Clemens reportedly told the detective that this second victim told him Chell hugged her often, and his hand would go “uncomfortably low.” Clemens also reportedly said that the second victim said when Chell gave her a high-five, he would interlace his fingers with hers and hold them there for a while. The second victim also reportedly told Clemens that Chell had asked her, “Can you only imagine if you and I were the same age?”

The detective reported in a sworn complaint against Clemens that the second victim said a group of 6th-grade girls had reported Chell’s behavior to Clemens early in February, before the February 20 report. The sworn complaint notes that this is corroborated by the fact that Clemens had reviewed and saved clips from the gym surveillance cameras as far back as February 8 and that several of the clips are marked with the initials of Chell and this victim. 

Clemens has been charged with failure to report suspected child abuse against this victim.

Third and fourth victims

A third victim reported to the detective that before she learned that Chell had been fired, she told a female classmate that Chell had been touching her inappropriately; the classmate had reportedly also been victimized by Chell, but she had not told the third victim about this. The classmate was reportedly shocked by the third victim’s disclosures because the classmate believed she was closer to Chell than the third victim was. The detective reported that surveillance video supported the third victim’s recollection that she was victimized by Chell after Clemens learned about Chell’s alleged inappropriate actions toward female students.

Clemens has been charged with child neglect in this case and also charged with failure to report suspected child abuse against a fourth victim (one of the three students who met with him after he learned about Chell’s alleged inappropriate actions toward female students).

Fifth victim

A fifth victim reportedly told the detective that Chell once whispered “I love you” to her as she walked by him. She said she was “shocked and confused” and asked him to repeat what he’d said. She told the detective that Chell looked “defeated, upset and hanging his head as he whispered under his breath” something like “I said, ‘I love you,’” and then he walked away. The fifth victim said this made her very uncomfortable, and when she heard that Chell had asked the first victim to be his girlfriend, she felt that she needed to report her experience with Chell. The detective noted that three 6th-grade girls said Chell had been telling each of them, “I love you,” for months. The girls reportedly said Chell expected them to say “I love you” back to him and that he would become “upset” if they did not respond with “I love you” when he said “I love you.” They also reported that Chell got “upset” if they did not visit him between classes.

Clemens has been charged with failure to report suspected child abuse in the case of the fifth victim.

“Unseparable”

One victim (it is unclear from the documents whether this victim is one of the above victims) told the detective that she thought it was “weird” the first time Chell said he loved her, but as time went on, she learned to say it back to him and eventually had no problem with it. She said Chell would get “upset” or “mad” if she didn’t say it back. According to the report, this victim “without thinking or hesitation, described her association with [Chell] as a ‘relationship’ and referred to the two of them as ‘unseparable’ [sic] and having a ‘bond’ due to how much personal information they shared with each other.”

This victim reportedly said Chell expected to hug her at least once a day, starting in September 2023, and that Chell would get upset if he thought she didn’t want to hug him. She said they gave each other “side hugs” and that at first, Chell placed his hand “very low, like, very, very low” on her back; she said she thought at first that it was accidental, but it became evident over time that it was intentional. She said he eventually put his entire hand on her buttocks and sometimes rubbed his hand up and down her arm, making her uncomfortable. She further told the detective that Chell “brushed” against her breast when he hugged her, and this became an everyday occurrence, with Chell placing his hand farther around her chest and sometimes squeezing her in a way that hurt her. This victim told the detective that Chell had implied that he had a significant amount of control over her athletic and academic careers, given his “position of power as her teacher and her coach.”

Chell has been charged with solicitation of lewd conduct with a student by an authority figure for the allegations regarding this victim.

10-year-old victim

Another victim (again, it is unclear whether this victim is one of the above victims) told the detective that Chell approached her for a hug after an awards ceremony, and she said the hug “wasn’t a normal hug” because Chell “touched somewhere he shouldn’t have touched”; she later elaborated that he had squeezed her buttocks during a side hug. The awards ceremony was in January 2024, and the victim was 10 years old at the time. 

This victim also reported that after that incident, Chell helped her with a computer issue, and while leaning over her, he touched his chest to her shoulder; she said this made her uncomfortable.

Chell has been charged with solicitation of lewd conduct with a student by an authority figure and lewd/lascivious molestation for the allegations regarding this victim.

“Unmistakably intentional”

An 11-year-old victim reportedly told the detective that Chell made “all the girls uncomfortable.” She said that when Chell gave her a side hug, he would “clinch” her waist tightly and pull her close. She said that when she described this to her classmates, they said it was “normal” for Chell; the detective noted that these friends have also been identified as victims in this case.

This victim reportedly said that one time when she visited Chell’s office, Chell grabbed her buttocks as she turned to leave. She said she reacted by quickly looking back at him, and he said something like, “Sorry about that.” On another occasion in Chell’s office, she said he gave her a side hug and intentionally touched her breast; she said the touch was “unmistakably intentional.”

Chell has been charged with two counts of solicitation of lewd conduct with a student by an authority figure and two counts of lewd/lascivious molestation for the allegations regarding this victim.

“Weirdly bouncy” piggyback rides

A 7th-grade girl reportedly told the detective that she saw Chell touching girls inappropriately and that he was “touchy” with her and her friend. She told the detective that the girls did an exercise in gym class in which they would pull on each others’ arms to improve balance while doing squat warm-ups. She said Chell would play this “game” with them, and one time he pulled her forward, causing her to fall onto him, with their torsos touching.

The girl said that Chell once told her friend to get on his back for a “piggyback ride” and the friend declined, so the girl volunteered. She said the ride lasted about 30 seconds, and Chell held her by the buttocks rather than by the legs. She added that Chell would speed up and slow down, causing her to bounce and causing her crotch to rub against his back. She said it felt inappropriate.

The detective noted that three or four middle school girls reported the “weirdly bouncy” piggyback rides and described them as “weird” and “inappropriate.”

Chell was charged with solicitation of lewd conduct with a student by an authority figure and lewd/lascivious molestation for the allegations regarding this victim.

Charges

Chell was initially booked on March 7 on 10 counts of lewd/lascivious behavior on a child between 12 and 16 years old, and on March 19, Judge David Kreider granted a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold him without bail until trial. On April 22, additional charges were filed via sworn complaint: five counts of solicitation of lewd conduct with a student by an authority figure, lewd/lascivious molestation of a child between 12 and 16 years of age, solicitation of a romantic relationship with a student by an authority figure, and child abuse without great bodily harm. Chell has not been booked on the new charges.

Clemens was initially booked on charges of child neglect without great bodily harm and destroying evidence and released on $60,000 bail. On April 22, additional charges of making a false report, two counts of child neglect without great bodily harm, and two counts of failure to report suspected child abuse were filed via sworn complaint. An additional charge of failure to report lewd conduct by an authority figure was filed on May 3. Clemens has not been booked on the new charges.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.