A Battle Ground massage therapist is accused of groping a woman’s breasts during a February massage session.
Justin C. Lien, 32, appeared Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court on a summons for a charge of indecent liberties. Lien entered a plea of not guilty. Judge Suzan Clark granted him supervised release. His trial is scheduled for July 14, court records show.
Battle Ground police responded Feb. 14 to reports of a sex crime. Officers contacted the woman who said she had a massage from Lien at Sage Wellness and Massage in Battle Ground. She said during the massage, Lien moved the sheet and exposed her breasts. She said he then massaged her bare breasts, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Afterward, she told Lien she’d never had her chest massaged to that degree, she said, and he replied that he thought he would relieve her tightness. The woman said since the visit, she’s felt violated and suffered from emotional distress, court records state.
When officers spoke with Lien, he walked them through his procedures for massages. They said he told them he has a habit of closing his eyes to focus on the massage, and he sometimes doesn’t know what body part he’s massaging. He said there could be times he accidentally grazed someone’s breasts because his eyes were closed, according to the affidavit.
Lien’s attorney provided police with a statement after he was contacted by the state Department of Health about the incident.
In the statement, investigators said Lien went through all of his sessions with the woman. He wrote that he recalled one time when the woman scratched her nose during a massage, which he said caused the sheet to fall and expose her chest. He said he immediately covered her up, according to court records.
He also said it’s common for clients to move around on the table and inadvertently expose an intimate area. When that happens, he said he covers them up and continues the massage, the affidavit states.
