SPARTA, Wis. – The owner of Sparta chiropractic and massage therapy business was charged with sexually assaulting clients. The criminal complaint alleged that Ethan E. Karls, 30, paid inordinate attention to female clients’ chests and touching, groping or grabbing their breasts. He was freed on $2,500 bond. The first complaint was in October 2020. Later three other women came forward. Karls is a 2016 massage therapy graduate of Fox Valley Technical College in Appleton. Because of the complaints, the state has suspended Karls’ license to practice. The business, Peak Performance Chiropractic, was then taken over by Megan Jo Karls, 31. She holds a 2012 degree in animal science from UW-River Falls and a 2015 degree from Palmer College of Chiropractics in Davenport, Iowa.
1-1/2 year path to charges
A woman claimed excessive breast attention to Sparta police in October 2020. District Attorney Kevin Croninger declined to prosecute, saying the evidence would be hard to demonstrate in court. The wiman asked a state investigator to look at the evidence. The investigator concluded there was evidence to warrant charges. Croninger declined again to press charges. In January 2022 three other women came forward. Also, two Peak Performance employees told police they found a a hidden camera in Karls’ massage room. Croninger filed charges in June.
Karls. Now without a state license.