NCJ Number
151752
Journal
Trial Volume: 30 Issue: 10 Dated: (October 1994) Pages: 46,48,50-53
Date Published
1994
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Recent cases on innkeepers' liability when hotel and motel guests are raped suggest that hoteliers still are not aware that their accommodations must be safe as well as convenient and comfortable.
Abstract
Through rapes appear to be increasingly common, too many hotel managers still choose to save money on locks, peepholes, light bulbs, and personnel safety training. Rapes on hotel premises present different legal and psychological issues than sex offenses in apartment complexes and the parking lots of shopping centers, because of the innkeeper's duty to provide safe lodging, the guest's trust that the innkeeper will meet this responsibility, and the female traveler's vulnerability. Issues that plaintiffs' attorneys should consider include whom to sue, jurisdiction, insurance coverage, specific allegations, theories of liability, and factors that establish negligence, custom and practice, and allocation of fault. 29 reference notes