A former Family Feud contestant has been charged with multiple counts of child sexual abuse.
Christopher Crisona, an elementary school teacher who has lived in both Delaware and Florida, was arrested in Orange County, Fla., on March 10, according to court records reviewed by Entertainment Weekly.
Crisona was charged with several counts of felony sex crimes following allegations of abuse from a former middle school student at St. Thomas the Apostle School in Wilmington, Del., where Crisona taught in the mid-1990s, according to a press release from Delaware's Department of Justice. Father John Taggart was also arrested and charged with multiple counts of child sexual abuse.
Crisona competed on Family Feud in 2010 during Steve Harvey's first season as the show's host. He and his family almost won a $20,000 prize during the "Fast Money" segment, but ultimately fell three points short of the threshold with 197 points.
Christopher Crisona on 'Family Feud' in 2010.
Multiple commenters under a YouTube clip of Crisona's Feud appearance claimed that the contestant was their elementary school teacher.
"The State’s indictment alleges a pattern of gravely serious abuse against a juvenile by two adults in a position of trust," Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings said in a press release. "As prosecutors, and as parents, these kinds of cases keep us up at night — but they also give us purpose. The victim in this case suffered profound trauma over a period of years and deserves justice. I’m grateful to the police, prosecutors, and social workers who have been critical to this investigation and who are committed to getting justice."
The Department of Justice's report on the case stated that Crisona was "removed mid year" from St. Thomas "following a student complaint," and that he later worked at multiple schools in the Wilmington area in the late '90s and early 2000s. He now works at an elementary school in Florida.
Local Florida news outlet WFTV reported that Crisona worked at at least seven elementary and middle schools in Orange County since 2008.
