SAN ANTONIO – A Bexar County state district court judge on Wednesday granted a motion for class action certification in a lawsuit filed against the City of San Antonio by former convention center employees who said they were sexually harassed and assaulted at work.
The order, signed by Judge Toni Arteaga, noted that all female non-supervisory employees at the Henry B. González Convention Center are “in the zone of danger” — even if they have not been direct victims of sexual harassment and retaliation.
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The class, as defined in the order, extends to all non-supervisory employees who work or worked at the city-run convention center from April 2021 to the time of trial.
A class action designation typically increases the size of a lawsuit, as the pool of potential victims grows and visibility of the case increases.
The suit, which seeks more than $1 million in damages, was filed after a series of stories from KSAT Investigates revealed that at least five maintenance supervisors at the convention center were accused of improperly treating female coworkers in recent years.
The original suit claims that under the watch of Convention and Sports Facilities Director Patricia Muzquiz Cantor, the convention center “has become a den where male supervisors prey on their female subordinates.”
The motion for class action certification filed earlier this year stated that attorneys for the former employees contend at least 13 men employed at the convention center since 2021 “sexually harassed, assaulted, battered, and/or sexually abused their female colleagues.”
Nine of those 13 male employees were supervisors, according to the motion.
“This ruling sends a clear message,” attorney Mark Anthony Sánchez told KSAT Investigates. “Powerful institutions do not get to hide behind broken systems or indifferent leadership. Maria (Villegas) and Sarah (Schneuker) stood up because they believed the truth mattered — not just for themselves, but for every woman who worked under these abusive conditions.”
Sánchez added that the group’s voices will now be heard and the city will have to answer for what happened.
A City of San Antonio spokesperson sent KSAT the following statement on Thursday afternoon.
“Late Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, the City received notice that the judge in this case had entered an order contrary to the judge’s notes from July 2025,” the statement began. “The City will be seeking reconsideration and clarification from the court.”
Read more reporting on the KSAT Investigates page.
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