Geneva woman files lawsuit against massage parlor for lack of back

GENEVA, Ill. — A Geneva woman filed a lawsuit Wednesday alleging whether Massage Envy, in Geneva, conducted a background check on a massage therapist who she alleged sexually assaulted her.

Christine Schirtzinger, 51, filed a 37-count civil lawsuit in Cook County Circuit court against the massage salon for claiming that if they provided adequate supervision and a proper background check, she would not have been sexually assaulted.

The complaint filed by the woman’s attorney alleges that the massage therapist had a criminal past where he pled guilty to a sex charge stemming from the incident in 2006 and another offense in March 2022.

According to the complaint, James ‘Rob’ Garret Garrett violated Schirtzinger three times during a massage on December 12, 2020. She reportedly immediately told him to stop and reported the assault to the Geneva police department.

Garrett was charged with multiple felonies related to the sexual assault, pled guilty to a reduced misdemeanor sexual charge and was placed on 24 months sex offender probation, ordered to undergo an alcohol and drug evaluation and prohibited from massage therapy work. Following his guilty plea, Garrett was required to register as a sex offender in Illinois.

Despite his guilty plea in March of 2022 and being a registered sex offender, Garrett continued to hold a massage therapy license in the State of Illinois for seven months following his conviction. The state did not revoke his license until November. 

The Massage Envy franchise network is the largest provider of therapeutic massages and skin care in the U.S.  According to the complaint, Massage Envy has been confronted with hundreds of complaints, police reports and lawsuits by women nationwide who have experienced sexual misconduct during massages at Massage Envy facilities.  The civil lawsuit was filed under the Gender Violence Act.