Nuria Martinez-Keel
OKLAHOMA CITY — Ninnekah Public Schools will pay $7.5 million to settle a lawsuit filed by 14 women and girls who sued the district over alleged sexual abuse by their high school basketball coach.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs say the settlement amount is a new record for abuse cases against Oklahoma school districts, topping the previous high of $5 million from a hazing lawsuit against Kingfisher Public Schools. The agreement with Ninnekah was finalized in Oklahoma City federal court on Wednesday.
Ninnekah schools, a district of about 450 students 50 miles southwest of Oklahoma City, agreed to pay $1.5 million within 30 days of the settlement and the remaining $6 million over the next three years, according to court documents. The Ninnekah Board of Education voted to approve the lawsuit settlement on Aug. 5.
The district's school board issued a statement Wednesday saying it denies any liability to the plaintiffs. The board said it accepted the settlement because, had the case gone to trial, an adverse verdict would pose a "serious risk" to the district's financial solvency and ability to continue operating.
"The board and the school district's administration hope that the conclusion of the litigation will provide the community with closure regarding this situation and allow the school district to move forward with a renewed focus on its educational mission," the statement reads.
The plaintiffs were represented by a legal team led by Oklahoma City attorney Cameron Spradling, whose law practice focuses on civil rights and school sexual abuse cases, and Texas-based attorneys Brad Beckworth, Ross Leonoudakis and Nathan Hall.
"The 14 plaintiffs in this case are survivors," the team of attorneys said in a statement. "Many of them suffered unimaginable trauma as young children at Ninnekah Public Schools. They are pleased to have reached a settlement that they hope will make all schools across the State of Oklahoma safer by bringing awareness to child sex abuse in our public schools."
The plaintiffs' alleged abuser, Ronald Gene Akins, is serving a 15-year prison sentence that will be followed by 25 years of probation and a requirement to register as a sex offender.
Akins, 57, pleaded guilty last year in Grady County District Court to 10 felony counts, including charges of sexual battery, rape by instrumentation, and lewd or indecent acts to a child under 16.
A school bus is parked outside Ninnekah Middle School in Ninnekah on July 10. Ninnekah Public Schools will pay a record-breaking settlement amount to 14 women and girls who say they suffered sexual abuse from a basketball coach. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)
Many of Akins' alleged victims, three of whom are still minors, sued the Ninnekah district in August 2021, accusing district officials of negligence, infliction of emotional distress and violations of Title IX and the Fourteenth Amendment.
One of the victims, listed as the lead plaintiff in the lawsuit, prompted Akins' arrest in 2021 when she reported her abuse to police. Two other women gave testimony in the criminal case but had surpassed the statute of limitations to participate in the lawsuit. Oklahoma Voice does not identify victims of sexual assault unless they permit it.
The lead plaintiff reported multiple incidents in which Akins sexually touched her while she was 16 and 17 years old. She was afraid if she didn't comply she would lose her chance at a college basketball scholarship, the lawsuit states.
Other plaintiffs reported the coach inappropriately touched them and made sexual comments about their bodies.
"This behavior was frequent, and Akins engaged in this behavior during the entirety of his time at Ninnekah Public Schools, 2014-2021," their lawsuit states.
The lawsuit named five former district employees whom the plaintiffs say failed to report rumors of sexual abuse. All five will be dropped from the case in the final settlement agreement.
Reported sexual abuse at Ninnekah High School led to a $7.5 million lawsuit settlement for the school district and a 15-year prison sentence for the school's former girls basketball coach. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice)
The plaintiffs contended the five individuals — including the former district superintendent, high school principal, athletic director and Title IX coordinator — knew about Akins' behavior toward the girls basketball players he coached at Ninnekah High School.
Oklahoma law requires all school employees to report suspicions of child abuse to law enforcement and the state Department of Human Services.
An original version of the lawsuit also named the Grady County sheriff, a detective and Friend Public School as defendants.
The sheriff's office detective had investigated an allegation made against Akins in 2015 by a young woman who said the coach sexually abused her when she was in eighth grade at Friend Public School near Ninnekah.
The investigation went nowhere, and Grady County investigators later found the case file had gone missing, the lawsuit states.
The sheriff, the detective and Friend school were removed from the lawsuit four months after it was filed, but the plaintiffs' complaint still insinuates all three failed to fully investigate the 2015 allegation against Akins.
News of the abuse and Akins' arrest outraged the small community of Ninnekah, a farming town with a population under 800 people. Local residents packed their school board meetings, furious that the reported abuse had been allowed to continue for years.
Those taxpayers now will bear the cost of the multi-million-dollar settlement.
The scandal prompted multiple suspensions and resignations of school officials, an overhaul of the district's Title IX procedures and a downgrade to Ninnekah's accreditation status with the Oklahoma State Department of Education.
The state Department of Education said the allegations represented a "total breakdown" in student Title IX protections.
