Teenage girl's family sues Modesto Boxing Gym owner convicted of sexually abusing her
The family of a teenage girl is suing the owner of Modesto Boxing Gym who is serving a prison sentence for sexually abusing her while she was one of his students.
The civil lawsuit, filed May 24 in San Joaquin Superior County, alleges that Eugenio Hermosillo "groomed" the girl for sexual abuse after her mother enrolled her 13-year-old daughter for boxing lessons at the gym. The lawsuit alleges Hermosillo first had sex with the girl when she was 14.
The family's attorney argues that the gym and its employees had the responsibility to protect the girl from dangerous people including Hermosillo.
"Childhood sexual abuse and exploitation causes traumatic harm that children suffer for the rest of their lives," said Joseph C. George, the Sacramento attorney who filed the lawsuit on behalf of the girl and her mother.
Hermosillo, 47, on Thursday was being housed at San Quentin State Prison. Attempts by The Modesto Bee to reach someone at the business were unsuccessful Thursday. A phone number listed on the Modesto Boxing Gym's web site and its Facebook page is not in service.
It appeared Thursday that the Modesto Boxing Gym is no longer in business, or at least not at the same location in one of the suites at 1027 N. Emerald Avenue in west Modesto. That's where the business used to operate when Hermosillo was the owner. A party supplies rental business has replaced the gym at that location.
San Joaquin Superior court records available online do not have an attorney listed for the defendants, Hermosillo and the Modesto Boxing Gym. The lawsuit indicates there are others associated with the gym who later could be listed as defendants, but the plaintiff doesn't specifically know their identities.
In March, Hermosillo was convicted of committing lewd acts with a child 14 or 15 years old and having unlawful sexual intercourse with a child. In exchange for a no contest plea to those felony charges, Hermosillo was sentenced to two years in prison, according to the Stanislaus County District Attorney's Office.
As part of his sentence, the court ordered Hermosillo to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
The girl was identified as “Jane Doe” in a criminal complaint filed in Stanislaus Superior Court on April 26, 2017. Her attorney also identified the girl as "Jane Doe" and her mother as "Mary Doe" to protect their privacy, according to the lawsuit.
The plaintiffs' attorney argues in the lawsuit that Hermosillo began "grooming" or preparing the girl for sexual abuse by offering her rides to and from her boxing lessons. Prosecutors have said the sexual misconduct with the girl occurred sometime from Nov. 1, 2016, through April 23, 2017, according to the criminal complaint.
Eugenio Hermosillo was the owner of Modesto Boxing Gym when he was arrested on April 28, 2017. The business' website at the time of his arrest indicated that Hermosillo trained children at the gym. The civil lawsuit says that Hermosillo also was listed as chief executive officer of the business.
The plaintiffs are seeking an unspecified amount of damages for the physical, mental and emotional problems the girl has suffered and the costs incurred for her medical and mental health treatment, according to the lawsuit. The civil case is scheduled for a case management conference Nov. 20.
This story was originally published June 22, 2018 at 9:13 AM with the headline "Teenage girl's family sues Modesto Boxing Gym owner convicted of sexually abusing her."