LOS ANGELES : Woman Files ‘Peeping Tom’ Suit Against Restaurant

A Los Angeles County woman who contends that somebody spied on her as she used the bathroom in a Jack in the Box in Norco, sued the restaurant Tuesday and the firm that licensed the franchisee.

Josephine Cota is seeking damages for sexual assault, her attorney, David D. Moriel, said. He said his legal research indicates that at least 16 known “peephole” lawsuits have been filed in the United States. Two of them, he said, resulted in civil awards against a motel chain.

“These things go unnoticed or they’re never acted on because they don’t find the peeping Tom,” Moriel said. “This case is different.”

Cota, who filed in Riverside Superior Court, is seeking at least $750,000 in general damages and unspecified punitive damages from San Diego-based Foodmaker Inc., which owns Jack in the Box.

Foodmaker spokeswoman Sheree Zizzi said, “We have not received a copy of the suit. But based on our understanding, we have no reason to believe the allegations are true.”