Former Shadow Hills High School Coach Sentenced For Teen Sex Assault

INDIO, CA — A former Shadow Hills High School basketball coach was sentenced to over two years in prison Monday for sexually assaulting a teenage girl he coached four years ago.

Ryan Leron Towner, 36, was arrested June 10, 2021, and pleaded guilty on June 13 to felony counts of lewd acts on a child under 14 years old with force and unlawful intercourse with a minor, who was identified in court papers only as "Jane Doe."

He made his plea directly to the court, without an agreement on sentencing with prosecutors, according to the District Attorney's Office.

He was sentenced Monday to two years and eight months in prison.

Riverside County sheriff's Investigator Joshua Reinbolz said authorities began investigating Towner in April 2021. He said Towner coached the victim on a travel basketball team.

Towner also coached the Shadow Hills boys' basketball team from 2018 through most of the 2021 season. He did not coach the team for its final 10 games and was fired by the Indio school a few days before his arrest, the Desert Sun reported.