MEDIA – A Pennsylvania woman alleges she was subjected to sexual assault and battery by her chiropractor, who was convicted in January of several counts of indecent assault and aggravated indecent assault for sexually abusing several patients over a six year-period.
Jane Doe first filed suit in the Delaware County Court of Common Pleas on Feb. 13 versus Cirio Chiropractic & Wellness, Cirio Chiropractic Centre, Chiropractic Neuro & Wellness and Newtown Square Family Chiropractic Center, all of Newtown Square, Ardel Ignacio Cirio of Thornton, Rosalie Cirio of Springfield and Mimi Cirio of Upper Chichester.
“Plaintiff Jane Doe was a chiropractic patient with Ardel Ignacio Cirio since 2015. During that time, and at all relevant times, Ardel Ignacio Cirio was a licensed chiropractor and agent of and offering services to Jane Doe through Chiropractic Practices. Jane Doe sought chiropractic treatment from Chiropractic Services, specifically Chiropractic adjustments, a procedure in which a chiropractor will use his or her hands or a small instrument to apply a controlled, sudden force to a spinal joint with the goal of improving a patient’s spinal motion and improve the patient’s physical function,” the suit says.
“Around January or February of 2021, when plaintiff went in for her chiropractic appointments on about a weekly basis, she noticed that Ardel Ignacio Cirio would touch her in progressively inappropriate ways causing her great discomfort. Specifically, during these visits, wherein Jane Doe was seeking chiropractic adjustment, Ardel Ignacio Cirio would place his hands under her shirt and brassiere, clearly, intentionally, and purposefully brushing his hands past her breast. During these visits, Ardel Ignacio Cirio was methodically exposing plaintiff to sexual behaviors, which are easily dismissed as benign, to ultimately desensitize her, a process frequently employed by sexual predators like Ardel Ignacio Cirio. Specifically, Ardel Ignacio Cirio would place one hand on plaintiff’s shoulder, and place the other hand underneath plaintiff’s brassiere, touching the side of her breast. Ardel Ignacio Cirio would do this to each of plaintiff’s breast during these examinations.”
The suit continues that “at no time did the plaintiff consent to such unwanted, unlawful, and sexually deviant touching committed by Ardel Ignacio Cirio” and, disturbingly, “at no time did any defendants warn, prevent, or rescue plaintiff from Ardel Ignacio Cirio’s sexually predatory ways.”
“Frighteningly, yet in accord with Ardel Ignacio Cirio’s predatory grooming patterns, Ardel Ignacio Cirio’s misconduct towards plaintiff continued and escalated on March 8, 2021. On March 8, 2021, Jane Doe went to Chiropractic Practices to obtain an adjustment. Again, Ardel Ignacio Cirio was assigned to provide her with chiropractic services. On that day, while plaintiff was receiving what was supposed to be a shoulder adjustment, Ardel Ignacio Cirio placed his hand underneath her shirt and brassiere. With one hand on plaintiff’s shoulder, Ardel Ignacio Cirio grouped, touched, and rubbed plaintiff’s breast, making sure to caress her nipple as well. At no time did plaintiff consent to such unwanted, unlawful, and sexually deviant touching committed by Ardel Ignacio Cirio,” the suit states.
“Disturbingly, at no time did any defendants warn, prevent, or rescue plaintiff of Ardel Ignacio Cirio’s sexually predatory ways. Shocked, embarrassed, confused, and humiliated, plaintiff froze in fear, as she did not, nor ever would, consent to the sexual misconduct Ardel Ignacio Cirio perpetrated against her. After groping and caressing plaintiff’s breast, Ardel Ignacio Cirio removed his hand from her breast and nipple, placed his other hand on her other shoulder, and placed his hand underneath her shirt and brassiere again. At no time did plaintiff consent to such unwanted, unlawful, and sexually deviant touching committed by Ardel Ignacio Cirio. Disturbingly, at no time did any defendants warn, prevent, or rescue plaintiff of Ardel Ignacio Cirio’s sexually predatory ways. Again, shocked, embarrassed, confused, and humiliated, plaintiff froze in fear, as she did not, nor ever would, consent to the sexual misconduct Ardel Ignacio Cirio perpetrated against her.”
The suit says the plaintiff “immediately reported Ardel Ignacio Cirio’s sexually explicit misconduct to the police the same day and provided a statement to the police the following day”, and adds that at least seven other women were victimized by the chiropractor defendant in a similar fashion.
“On Jan. 16, 2023, Ardel Ignacio Cirio was convicted of several counts of indecent assault and aggravated indecent assault for sexually abusing several patients over the course of six years,” the suit states.
For counts of negligence, recklessness and/or gross negligence, negligent hiring, negligent retention and supervision, negligent failure to rescue, intentional infliction of emotional distress, assault, battery and sexual battery, the plaintiff is seeking injunctive, compensatory and punitive damages, and any other costs, amounts of which exceed the jurisdictional limits of all lower courts.
The plaintiff is represented by Kristen G. Feden, Robert J. Mongeluzzi, Andrew R. Duffy and Marni S. Berger of Saltz Mongeluzzi & Bendesky, in Philadelphia.
The defendants have not yet obtained legal counsel.
Delaware County Court of Common Pleas case CV-2023-001208
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com