An Elk Grove bowling alley is being sued by the victim of a parking-lot assault that was labeled a hate crime by police.
Seth Parker, who required reconstructive facial surgery after the June 5 assault, filed a civil lawsuit on Thursday in Sacramento Superior Court against Strikes Family Entertainment Center and its current and former owners.
The suit says Strikes tolerated an atmosphere of violence and was responsible for the injuries suffered by the 26-year-old Sacramentan.
Parker is also suing Joel Baltazar Olivarez, who pleaded guilty last month to felony battery charges in connection with the beating.
Olivarez's sentencing in Sacramento Superior Court, where he faces up to four years in prison, was postponed Friday to Feb. 17.
Parker's lawyer, Victor Bertolani, said his client is "still having a lot of problems" from the beating.
Police said Parker was leaving the bowling alley with a group of female friends when they were confronted by two men. After yelling homophobic slurs at Parker's group, one of the men punched him in the face. The case was quickly denounced by various elected officials and leaders of the gay community.
The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages. It says the bowling alley was the scene of "numerous fights, violent altercations and riots" in the months leading up to the beating.
Police said they were called to the alley 33 times in the first three months of last year, including five times for assaults.
Strikes' new owner, Los Angeles businessman Parviz Parvizyar, said his general manager has worked with Elk Grove police to improve security at the Laguna Boulevard site.
"Since that episode, we have not had any problems there," he said.
The bowling alley is part of a sports complex developed by Parvizyar on the site of the old JVC Americas compact-disc factory. Parvizyar had been the landlord but took over the bowling alley after former co-owners James Falls and Keith Burcham filed for personal bankruptcy last summer.
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