Oregon State Police began investigating Joseph Deley on February 6, 2026, after receiving a report involving a Highland Elementary student, according to KTVZ. Investigators identified three more students connected to the 2018, 2022 and 2024 school years, bringing the reported total to four. A Josephine County grand jury indicted Deley on April 9 on six counts of first-degree sexual abuse, and he was arrested on April 14, according to the Grants Pass Tribune. Deley, 64, had worked as an education assistant at Highland Elementary School.
What the civil lawsuit alleges
Two mothers have sued Grants Pass School District 7, its superintendent and Highland Elementary principal Nevin Van Manen. The lawsuit alleges that their 11-year-old daughters were inappropriately touched by Deley and that the defendants knew of a continuing risk to students but failed to prevent the alleged abuse or report it to authorities, according to KOBI-TV NBC5.
The lawsuit accuses Van Manen of dismissing complaints and failing to report them. Attorney Paul Galm told KOBI that school officials are mandatory reporters under state law. He also said the principal had heard similar reports in 2018, 2022, 2024, 2025 and 2026, and that most were not referred to law enforcement, according to KOBI. Galm said one girl disclosed alleged abuse in 2024 and that the school conducted an internal investigation, after which Van Manen concluded the disclosure was fabricated. The other girl reportedly disclosed alleged abuse in 2025 and 2026; her mother said she reported the allegations to the Department of Human Services and police, KOBI reported.
Responses and next steps
Grants Pass School District 7 said it could not comment on pending litigation, KOBI reported. The mothers said they are seeking accountability and want to prevent harm to other students. The criminal case remains pending; KOBI reported that Deley pleaded not guilty and that a status check was scheduled for January 2027.
Oregon reporting rules and a separate case
A 2019 Oregon rule notice said the Teacher Standards and Practices Commission must immediately begin an investigation after receiving a report of suspected sexual conduct by a licensed school employee, according to the Oregon Secretary of State Archives Division. The notice describes an investigative procedure, not educator-discipline records or year-by-year counts by misconduct category. Separately, The Oregonian/OregonLive reported that a lawsuit involving Jewell School District and former administrators, filed in federal court in Portland in 2024, was settled in late May. That is a separate case from the pending Grants Pass allegations.
