On January 20, 2024, Jyanea (also known as Jay to her coworkers) was attacked by an assailant, sexually assaulted, and mugged at the onsite parking structure of her job, resulting in both physical injuries and also psychological mental health problems.

At the time of the mugging, Jay worked in a heavily high incident location in Downtown San Jose near an unhoused encampment that leads to numerous reported incidents, up to 3-5 incidents per week. Between December 2023 to the time of Jay's assault, there were over 60 incidents at her work site that were reported to her employer. Despite reporting the mugging and sexual assault to her employer in January, no change in safety protocols was implemented, and her employer, Starbucks Coffee Company, did not provide Jay with any worker’s compensation.

Through out January, Jay began to suffer repeated panic attacks at work, out of fear of both retaliation and another potential attack. The fear of another attack was rooted in the high number of incidents that have occurred to Jay the past, going back as far as April 2021, when she was also mugged. This incident was also reported to her employer in April 2021, and no change in safety protocols were implemented.

After the mugging in January, Jay began experiencing many post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms, including hyper-vigilance, flashbacks of the attack, consistent fear, severe anxiety and mistrust, depression and guilt, insomnia, and nightmares. She would have panic and anxiety attacks at work, all of which were brushed aside by her supervisor.

She also faced retaliation from her employer when reporting these safety concerns, which included her employer denying her request to transfer and withdrawing some of her benefits. The PTSD symptoms continued to worsen until on February 1, 2024, when Jay was found collapsed and unconscious at work by three witnesses.

She was taken to the hospital after being found collapsed for treatment, where she was soon diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety from the initial attack and sexual assault. She was also diagnosed with physical injuries to her lower back and right hip, which affected her ability to walk.

Despite filing for worker’s compensation, Jay received little support from her employer on the matter. Her employer made the return to work a long and trying process, and made little attempt to accommodate the work restrictions set by her doctors.

Despite seeing 3 different occupational doctors, a licensed physical therapist, a licensed therapist, a licensed psychologist, and her own personal physician who all validated the nature of her injury, Jay’s compensation case was denied by her employer, on the grounds that “there’s no substantial factual medical/psychological/psychiatric evidence to support industrial causation,” despite documentation submitted by 2 different occupational physicians. Her employer is arguing that Jay "knew the consequences of working in Downtown" and that they (Starbucks) did not authorize her to park her car in the garage where she was attacked, despite her supervisor providing documentation that her employer (Starbucks Coffee Company) would pay for the parking fees required to park in that location as a part of her benefits package.

Due to the denial of her case, Jay was forced to continue seeking treatment on her own, and paying for those treatments out of pocket, which created a heavy financial burden on Jay and her family. Due to the California’s overrun system to review and process disability claims, Jay has yet to receive any sort of still waiting for the state disability application to be processed, despite the incident occurring 8 months ago. Jay was set back about $15,000 in income when her employer withheld disability payments.

Because of this, a great financial burden was placed on Jay and her family. Medical and other living bills and expenses have piled up, none of which were covered through worker’s compensation. In addition, due to the nature of this case, Jay has retained a lawyer to support the process of appealing the worker’s compensation denial, which is an ongoing legal case that will lead to a potential hearing in the future.

To those that know Jay, she is a kind-hearted and loving person who always prioritizes the needs of others above her own. She would work long hours to ensure her team was supported and her loved ones taken care of, and even after working a full 8 hours shift herself, she would never hesitate to extend her shift to support a peer. She never forgot someone's birthday or their favorite things, and has a strong loyalty to those she cared fiercely for. Jay was known to randomly drop by unexpectedly and surprise you with a gift because she was thinking of you. Jay is truly the greatest friend, with her ability to love fiercely, radiate kindness, and spread joy.

Here are some photographs that showcase the ways that Jay has made a lasting impact in her community through her role at work. Photos have been shared with us with the permission of their respective owners.

Any support you can is greatly appreciated to support Jay and her family. All funds raised will be used for basic living expenses that have accumulated while she was off work (unpaid) for four months, attorney expenses to support in the ongoing workers compensation appeal case, and the unpaid medical bills that are remaining. Funds are guaranteed and will be deposited automatically to Jyanea’s account in about 2 to 3 days of your donation by GoFundMe. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for sharing your blessings.