Sex Abuse Suit Against Massachusetts Private School Seeks $75M

The parents of a 16-year-old girl have sued an Easthampton private school, claiming their daughter was sexually assaulted by a teacher.

The unnamed plaintiffs are seeking $75 million from The Williston Northampton School, three administrators and former biology teacher Dennis P. Ryan.

The federal suit, filed last week in Springfield, claims Ryan built a relationship with the girl, then sexually assaulted her in his apartment in a dorm. It claims that after the girl complained, the school suggested she was lying and labeled her “mentally unstable.”

The school said Wednesday it’s confident the court case will show it acted properly. It said it will “fight vigorously any suggestions that bring into question how we fulfill our mission of educating young people.”

A telephone listing for Ryan could not immediately be found.