Leo Ryan
| Leo Ryan | |
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Ryan in 1977–1978
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 11th district |
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In office January 3, 1973 – November 18, 1978 |
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| Preceded by | Paul N. McCloskey, Jr. |
| Succeeded by | William H. Royer |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 27th district |
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In office 1962–1972 |
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| Preceded by | Glenn E. Coolidge |
| Succeeded by | Lou Papan |
| Mayor of South San Francisco, California | |
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In office 1962–1962 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Leo Joseph Ryan, Jr. May 5, 1925 Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S. |
| Died | November 18, 1978 (aged 53) Port Kaituma, Guyana |
| Resting place | Golden Gate National Cemetery, San Bruno, California |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Children | 5 |
| Alma mater |
Bates College (V-12) Creighton University (B.A.)(M.S.) |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch |
 United States Navy
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| Years of service | 1943–1946 |
Leo Joseph Ryan, Jr. (May 5, 1925 – November 18, 1978) was an American teacher and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the U.S. Representative from California's 11th congressional district from 1973 until his assassination in 1978.
After the Watts Riots of 1965, Assemblyman Ryan took a job as a substitute school teacher to investigate and document conditions in the area. In 1970, he investigated the conditions of California prisons by being held, under a pseudonym, as an inmate in Folsom Prison, while presiding as chairman of the Assembly committee that oversaw prison reform. During his time in Congress, Ryan traveled to Newfoundland to investigate the practice of seal hunting. He was also famous for vocal criticism of the lack of Congressional oversight of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), and authored the Hughes–Ryan Amendment, passed in 1974.
Ryan was stabbed in Guyana by a woman of the Peoples Temple in November 1978, just hours prior to the Jonestown mass suicide and 11 days after he was re-elected for a fourth term. He was the second sitting member of the U.S. House of Representatives to have been assassinated in office, the first being James M. Hinds in 1868. He was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal posthumously in 1983.
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