COEUR d’ALENE — A former teacher received a life sentence Thursday for the “horrific” sexual abuse of two children.

Ronald D. Stone, 64, was convicted in June of two counts of lewd conduct with a minor under the age of 16.

First District Judge Cynthia Meyer sentenced Stone to life in prison, the maximum penalty. He will be eligible for parole in 30 years, when he is 94 years old.

“I have never heard allegations worse than these,” Meyer said before handing down the sentence.

The abuse was not connected to Stone’s former employment as a fifth grade teacher at Hayden Meadows Elementary School.

After his arrest in 2019, the Coeur d’Alene School District placed Stone on administrative leave. Parents and guardians of Hayden Meadows students also received a letter notifying them of the arrest.

Two victims, who are now adults, testified at trial to abuse that occurred between 1992 and 2006. They were between the ages of 3 and 15 when Stone abused them.

The women addressed the court Thursday before Stone’s sentence was read, describing how the years of physical, emotional and sexual abuse have affected them.

“He caused me a lifetime of pain,” one woman said. “He took a quiet, impressionable and loving child and twisted me for his own sexual gratification.”

By reporting the abuse and testifying against Stone, she said she was finally able to stand up to him in a way she couldn’t as a child.

“What you did was not my fault,” she said. “I have survived you. I am stronger than your darkest parts. I am healing the parts that you have twisted. There is a part of me you cannot destroy.”

Prosecuting attorney Rebecca Perez noted that Stone had a reputation as a good man before his arrest. He was a teacher and a leader in his church community. Perez said the contrast between his public and private lives illustrates the insidious nature of sexual abuse.

“Sexual abuse of a child occurs in secret, behind closed doors, when there is not a church gathering or a full classroom,” she said.

At trial, Stone denied the allegations for which he was convicted. He chose not to speak in court before sentencing.

His attorney, James Siebe, maintained that the allegations were false and said there was no need to imprison Stone for the protection of society.

Meyer rejected the notion that the victims lied.

“I can’t imagine making up these stories,” she said. “Weeping during the telling, exposing what were the most shameful periods of these women’s lives.”

The second woman told the court that Stone caused her to live in fear and shame.

“We matter,” she said. “We are not things or trash to be used by you. It is time you have to face what you did. You sucked the life out of me long enough.”

She said her greatest accomplishment is speaking out about Stone’s crimes, so he will never be around vulnerable children again.

The period following Stone’s conviction was the first time in 30 years that she didn’t have to fear seeing him, she said.

“Our lives will continue to grow and flourish,” she said. “I am finally free.”

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If you or someone you know in North Idaho is experiencing domestic violence or sexual abuse, call Safe Passage Violence Prevention Center's 24-hour hotline: 208-664-9303.