Chandler Unified principal on leave as 'Goon'-related legal claims stack up

A southeast Valley principal whose stepson has been arrested in connection with the August beating of another teen and accused in a lawsuit of coordinating a May attack is now on leave.

An email that the Chandler Unified School District sent to parents on Tuesday does not state how Riggs Elementary School Principal Jamie Lander's leave was initiated. Stephanie Ingersoll, a spokesperson for the district, declined to comment because it's a personnel matter.

On Monday, The Arizona Republic published statements Lander made to Gilbert police while they were interviewing her stepson in connection with the August assault. Lander sought to intercede on her stepson's behalf after police reopened the case in December, which she claimed resulted from political pressure, according to police records obtained by The Arizona Republic.

On Aug. 18, Richard Kuehner's then-16-year-old son was attacked in the parking lot of the Gilbert In-N-Out Burger. Kuehner's son named Lander's stepson as one of his attackers that night, but police said they were "unable" to establish probable cause after interviewing him.

Gilbert police listed the case as "inactive" in October. They didn't reopen it until after The Republic inquired about the attack in December.

Police have now made six arrests in the assault, including Lander's 16-year-old stepson.

The Republic does not normally name juveniles accused of crimes unless they are charged as adults.

Lander has been named in three separate civil court filings.

Lander, her husband and her stepson were named in a lawsuit filed Thursday by Kuehner against over a dozen young people identified as "Gilbert Goons" and their parents. The case accuses the Goons of assaulting unsuspecting victims, recording attacks, and sharing photos and videos of them on social media. It accuses parents of negligent supervision.

The three were also named in a lawsuit filed Monday targeting Goons for their alleged involvement in a May attack on a 17-year-old in a Mesa park. The suit claims Lander's stepson "set up" the attack and threatened another.

A $6 million notice of claim sent Monday stemming from the attack on Kuehner's son names Lander too. The claim states Chandler Unified officials were warned Kuehner's son, a Perry High School student, had received death threats before being "jumped" by Goons, including Lander's stepson, and made no effort to stop it.

Lander lacked decision-making authority at Perry High School, according to the notice of claim. But it noted that Kuehner's son was forced to withdraw from the school as a direct result of her stepson's conduct. Kuehner's lawyer, Richard Lyons, referred to Lander as an agent and employee of the district, which is liable for her conduct.

Lander did not respond to The Republic's phone calls and text messages.

A Dec. 14 investigation by The Republic first detailed a string of vicious attacks by the Goons, who recorded their blitz-style attacks on teens in parks and parking garages, outside fast-food restaurants and at house parties. The Republic also outlined the group's potential ties to the fatal beating of 16-year-old Preston Lord at an Oct. 28 Halloween party in Queen Creek.

Since The Republic's report was published, at least 15 adults and juveniles have been arrested in connection with Goon attacks by authorities in Gilbert, Mesa and Pinal County.

Police record: Principal stopped stepson from naming attackers

In the weeks leading up to the Aug. 18 attack, Kuehner said, some Goons, including Lander's stepson, threatened to attack his son. Two carloads of Goons even showed up at his house but left before police arrived.

On the day of the attack, a "truck full of Gilbert Goons" stopped Kuehner's son at the In-N-Out, according to the lawsuit filed Thursday. Multiple individuals quickly surrounded and beat him.

A video of the attack obtained by The Republic shows Kuehner's son being hit and stomped in the parking lot.

On the night of the attack, Kuehner's son told police that Lander's stepson was one of his attackers, according to police reports. Police interviewed Lander's stepson that night, and he provided them with a video of the beating, which was shared in a group chat, police records state. He pointed himself out in the video as "running to go watch" the fight.

Police noted in their records that Lander's stepson appeared to be preparing to participate in the attack, but he is not seen in the video coming into contact with Kuehner's son. Police reported they were "unable" to establish probable cause and did not arrest Lander's stepson.

The attack video was sent to school resource officers at Perry High and elsewhere, but the investigation was inactivated due to a lack of leads, according to police.

Conspiracy alleged: 17 'Gilbert Goons' and parents sued over attacks

Lander's stepson was interviewed again by police in December after the case was reactivated. Lander and the teen's father were present for the interview at Perry High.

In the Dec. 19 police interview, Lander said her stepson was being made a "scapegoat," according to a police record of the interview. She said the only reason her stepson was being charged was because the media was involved, the record states.

"Jamie then told me, 'Your superiors want you to find somebody right now,'" a detective wrote in the interview synopsis.

When a detective asked her stepson to identify others involved in the attack, Jamie Lander raised objections, the detective reported. She didn't want her stepson "put in 'harm's way' by naming names," the detective said.

Lander said police had a video of the attack, access to the school surveillance system, photos of students and Perry High's resource officer. She said all could be used to identify other students in the attacks, according to the police record.

Lander suggested kids in the attack videos were being "lumped together" with the kids who were involved in Preston Lord's murder, according to the police synopsis. "That's the problem," she said.

Lander demanded to know why the detective was interested in her stepson since "it was known he didn't put his hands on anyone ... or go to anyone's home," according to the report.

She also said there were some accusations about Kuehner's son that could explain why he was targeted in the attack, according to the report. She said she and her colleagues in the district were receiving calls about his son's behavior and that Kuehner wasn't being held responsible for his son's action, the detective wrote.

When the detective said he intended to refer her stepson for robbery charges, she and her husband became upset, according to the report.

The detective said Lander's husband referenced another attack video, saying he could identify the attacker. When the detective asked for the name, the detective reported, Lander "made an audible 'mm-mm' sound and said, 'Nope. We're done.'"

Another lawsuit: $6M claim says Chandler school officials, Gilbert police failed to stop 'Gilbert Goons' attack

Reach reporter Elena Santa Cruz at elena.santacruz@gannett.com or 480-466-2265. Follow her on X at @ecsantacruz3.

Robert Anglen is an investigative reporter for The Republic. Reach him at robert.anglen@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-8694. Follow him on X at @robertanglen.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Chandler Unified principal on leave as 'Goon'-related claims stack up