Police are investigating whether Peoria Unified School District staff failed to report suspected child abuse to law enforcement or state authorities as required by Arizona law as part of an ongoing investigation into two teachers accused of sexually exploiting the same student at a high school in Peoria.
The confirmation could undercut the district's primary defense of its handling of the allegations after they first became public. Districts officials have repeatedly referenced an April statement by police that they hadn't found evidence of mandatory reporting failures.
Police officials said July 27 that developments in the case have led them to expand the scope of their criminal investigation.
"We're conducting a complex and thorough investigation
of multiple aspects stemming from this incident, including mandatory reporting," Officer William Kennedy, a spokesperson for the police department, said.
Centennial High School and the Peoria Unified School District continue to face scrutiny over the handling of sexual misconduct claims involving the two former employees. The ongoing case involves two former Centennial High School teachers, Haley Beck and Angela Burlaka, who are separately accused of having an inappropriate sexual relationship with the same student.
Police have recommended the two teachers face felony charges, although the Maricopa County Attorney's Office has yet to file any.
Members of the police department first confirmed the expanded scope of the investigation to members of the community, including in an email to district parent Mia Ellis.
"The Peoria Police Department is investigating the mandatory reporting aspect of the Centennial High School Investigation," Commander Craig Stefick wrote to Ellis in a July 23 email after Ellis pressed him for details on whether police were looking into mandatory reporting.
District officials have previously denied any mandatory reporting failures, pointing to a statement released by the Peoria police department in April stating there was "no indication that school officials failed to meet their obligations as mandatory reporters."
"At the time concerns were raised, the information known did not meet the legal threshold required to establish reasonable suspicion of abuse that would mandate a report to law enforcement or child protective services," wrote Sgt. Shelly Montes, a spokesperson for the Peoria Police Department, in the April statement.
Developments in the the case have caused that to shift, Officer Williams told The Arizona Republic.
"To speak quite clearly, we are investigation every aspect coming out of this case, including the mandatory reporting aspect," said Williams. He declined to provide further details as the investigation is ongoing.
Danielle Airey, a spokesperson for the district, said the district has "not received a recent update from the Peoria Police Department, but we continue to extend our full cooperation and support as we await the outcome of their investigation."
Expanded investigation follows 2nd search warrant
Increased scrutiny over reporting obligations follows a second search warrant police served on the districtearlier this month.
Sgt. Araceli Montes, a Peoria police spokesperson, said the warrant "was issued by a judge and sought materials that investigators believe may be relevant to the investigation," but declined to specify what was seized or whether any individual or organization was a target.
The district was served with an initial search warrant in May, which district officials sought to limit.
Following the second search warrant, Peoria Unified put out a statement attributed to its public relations team saying the district was "disappointed" by the police department's decision to execute a search warrant. In the statement, district officials said they were "cooperating fully" with the investigation.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Peoria police expand investigation into teacher sex scandal at school
