By admin 
PEORIA, AZ (AZFamily) — A new civil lawsuit has been filed against the Peoria Unified School District and former teacher Ricky Ordway, who was convicted of child sex crimes in 2023.
Read more Kari Lake nomination faces questions over Billboard awards claim
The lawsuit was filed this month and claims 15 to 20 young girls were molested and sexually assaulted by Ordway during the 2018-19 school year. The family of one victim says district leaders knew about Ordway’s predatory behavior and allowed it to continue despite numerous complaints.
Ordway was arrested seven years ago and later sentenced to 16 years in prison. He was a fifth-grade computer science teacher at Sun Valley Elementary and was convicted of aggravated assault and attempting to molest multiple young girls.
The new lawsuit claims the district’s “negligence” and “deliberate indifference” were a “moving force behind Ordway’s sexual assaults” of young girls.
The lawsuit comes as the district deals with a separate high-profile sex scandal at Centennial High School involving two teachers and one student.
“Arizona mandatory reporting laws exist to protect children. The law does not require absolute proof before concerns are reported. It is a low threshold. When credible warning signs involving possible grooming, or misconduct arise, adults in positions of authority have a duty to act,” said Heather Rooks in a recent press conference.
Rooks was ousted from her leadership role as governing board president after expressing concern that Centennial High’s principal, Scott Hollabaugh, violated mandatory reporting laws in that case. Hollabaugh resigned last week amid mounting public pressure. The district has seen two superintendents since the controversy began.
No criminal charges have been filed against former educators Haley Beck and Angela Burlaka, and the case is still under review by the county attorney’s office.
Read more Lawsuit seeks endangered species protection for rare snail threatened by border wall
District officials said they have not yet been served with the latest lawsuit, but the victim’s attorney said the case is expected to be settled in the next few weeks.
On May 13, the Peoria Police Department submitted multiple public records requests related to its investigation of Haley Beck and Angela Burlaka. The same day, the district acknowledged receipt of those requests and began the process of reviewing and responding accordingly.
On May 26, representatives from Peoria Unified met with the Peoria Police Department to reaffirm the district’s commitment to responding lawfully and appropriately to requests connected to the investigation. During that meeting, the district also communicated that certain requests required additional legal review to ensure compliance with state and federal law.
Today, the district was served with a search warrant at the District Administration Center directing Peoria Unified to produce documents by June 5, 2026. District staff immediately provided available hard-copy materials, including Haley Beck’s Statement of Charges, miscellaneous notes, the redacted police report and Angela Burlaka’s employee file. The district is now working to compile and produce the remaining electronic documents identified in the warrant.
Working cooperatively and transparently with local law enforcement has always been the cornerstone of our focus on safe schools. Peoria Unified has consistently responded to requests from law enforcement and remains committed to assisting within the bounds of the law and supporting the judicial process. We remain appreciative of Peoria Police Department’s extensive investigation and continue to await direction from Maricopa County Attorney’s Office as both entities consider evidence related to potential criminal charges.
See a spelling or grammatical error in our story? Please click here to report it.
Do you have a photo or video of a breaking news story? Send it to us here with a brief description.
Read more Buckeye police officer accused of punching two handcuffed suspects