Lady dies after falling while sliding down a bannister; family wants to sue the hotel

Tombi! · 25-07-2012 07:47PM #1

http://www.suntimes.com/13988360-761/family-of-girl-killed-sliding-down-banister-sue-palmer-house-event-hosts.html

The parents of a woman who died at the “Haunted Hotel Ball” at the Palmer House Hilton in 2010 are suing the hotel and the event hosts.

James and Deborah Duskey claim the death of their daughter Megan at the Halloween-themed ball was due to the negligence of the hotel and the event companies who hosted the party in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in Cook County Circuit Court.

The suit names Hilton Worldwide, the Palmer House Hilton, Surreal Chicago and Adrenaline Y2K as the hosts of the party.

Megan Duskey fell four floors to her death after she tried to slide down a railing on the Palmer House Hilton, at 17 E. Monroe St., on October 30, 2010.

The suit claims the hotel and event hosts allowed people at the ball to “consume unlimited amounts of alcoholic beverages” after they paid for a ticket and failed to provide security to protect the patrons of the ball.

Duskey, 23, was an elementary school teacher at Orville T. Bright Elementary School on the far South Side. She was dressed as comic book superhero the Silver Spectre when she died, authorities said at the time.

The Cook County Medical Examiner’s office said Duskey was dead at the scene, and they ruled her death an accident.

The ten-count suit seeks more than $500,000 in compensation for Duskey’s wrongful death.

Brian Pfeiffer, CEO of Surreal Chicago, one of the event hosts, declined to comment on the suit because Duskey’s death occurred in the lobby of the hotel and did not happen while she was at the party.

Efforts to reach Hilton Worldwide and Adrenaline Y2K were unsuccessful Tuesday night.

I feel that the woman was at fault. I could understand if she died of alcohol poisining as a result of consuming too much at the party but how would the hotel be responsible for someone deciding to slide down a bannister.

The family make it seem like the woman and the rest of her party should have been treated like children.

MagicMarker · 25-07-2012 07:49PM

And the Darwin Award goes to....

DEFTLEFTHAND · 25-07-2012 07:52PM

Family will do well to get anything. It's a clear case of contributory negligence.

Helix · 25-07-2012 07:53PM

DEFTLEFTHAND wrote: »

Family will do well to get anything. It's a clear case of contributory negligence.

i hope they get absolutely hammered for legal costs tbh

Daroxtar · 25-07-2012 07:54PM

So she got drunk and fell off a bannister while acting the bollix and died as a result......and the family want to sue the hotel?
The hotel should countersue the family for damage to the floor

Skerries · 25-07-2012 07:55PM

I think they mean Silk Spectre as Silver Spectre throws up some interesting pictures

Tombi! · 25-07-2012 07:56PM

Daroxtar wrote: »

So she got drunk and fell off a bannister while acting the bollix and died as a result......and the family want to sue the hotel?
The hotel should countersue the family for damage to the floor

The thing is, from what I understand the family think it's the hotel's fault for letting them get that drunk.

So in essence they think their 23 year old daughter should be treated like a small child.

humbert · 25-07-2012 07:56PM

I guess you'd have to give them the benefit of the doubt and assume grief has caused ordinarily decent people to go looking for someone else to blame.

Of course the organisers aren't at fault.

Riddle101 · 25-07-2012 07:56PM

I hate these types of people. People who will sue and take advantage of the system, in order to get some money . It's just like that story I read about the guy who was injured in the Denver shooting, and is now suing the cinema for having emergency exits at the back of the cinema. As well as the studio that produced the Dark Knight Rises for the trauma he endured during the whole event.

ComfyKnickers · 25-07-2012 07:57PM

This woman was 23 and a teacher so she's was mature and had a brain.

Pity the same can't be said for her parents!! :mad:

crazygeryy · 25-07-2012 07:57PM

jeez i thought this thread was about a 4 year old when i read it first.
screw them.shes 23 she should know better,or she should have.............

boomkatalog · 25-07-2012 08:04PM

Why don't they sue the alcohol companies? Or her friends, for not catching her? Or the dress makers, who made the dress out of such slippery material? Or the writers of the Simpsons, for making sliding down a banister seem cool? :rolleyes:

Carbon Bootprint · 25-07-2012 08:05PM

I agree, the title "Girl falls..." is misleading. She was an adult and no longer under the control of her parents. She gets sloshed and falls to her death, that's tragic. She seems to have acted of her own accord, though, so I see no reason for the parents to profit. Other than typical greed, of course.

humbert · 25-07-2012 08:08PM

ComfyKnickers wrote: »

This woman was 23 and a teacher so she's was mature and had a brain.

I have to respectfully disagree with your conclusion on both counts.

3ndahalfof6 · 25-07-2012 08:15PM

it was not the fall that killed her it was the sudden stop, if she was served to much liquor they might be in a pickle, they don't like that sort of thing over there.

IvySlayer · 25-07-2012 08:19PM

People trying to profit from death make me sick.

phasers · 25-07-2012 08:21PM

Morons try to profit from death of another moron.

Knex* · 25-07-2012 08:22PM

She was dressed as comic book superhero the Silver Spectre when she died, authorities said at the time.

And this is relevant how?

My name is URL · 25-07-2012 08:24PM

Who gives a shite? Obviously it was her own fault, but does it really deserve a thread? An American family suing a hotel... big fcuking woop

I could understand the need for a thread full of endless vitriol if the family had actually been successful with such a claim, but a story about how they intend to sue is pointless.

Apple are suing Samsung for $2.5 billion over a patent dispute. There's something worth talking or being annoyed about... not a couple of dopes chancing their arm after losing a daughter.

Tombi! · 25-07-2012 08:25PM

Knex. wrote: »

And this is relevant how?

I think the costume could have been slippery or something.

Maybe they want to sue DC comics and the costume store?

WumBuster · 25-07-2012 08:25PM

Its a sad story but i dont see what grounds the family have for suing.

25-07-2012 08:28PM

Feckin disgraceful. No doubt they will win.

I fell in a hotel recently, fell onto glass and cut my knee up pretty badly. I had to fill out an incident form and the guys on reception were telling me that the previous year a woman had fallen after swinging from the light fittings, and sued, she got €35,000 :rolleyes:

3ndahalfof6 · 25-07-2012 08:31PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Feckin disgraceful. No doubt they will win.

I fell in a hotel recently, fell onto glass and cut my knee up pretty badly. I had to fill out an incident form and the guys on reception were telling me that the previous year a woman had fallen after swinging from the light fittings, and sued, she got €35,000 :rolleyes:

How much do you think you will get.

NIMAN · 25-07-2012 08:33PM

" We have lost our beautiful daughter, we are heartbroken. But give us some money and we will learn to live with the loss".

Sometimes I despair for the human race. Problem is, the legal system and courts made the mistakes years ago of paying out on stupid claims, and now people will claim for anything. If they had nipped it in the bud many decades ago, we wouldn't have any of this.

mackg · 25-07-2012 08:37PM

Deleted User wrote: »

Feckin disgraceful. No doubt they will win.

I fell in a hotel recently, fell onto glass and cut my knee up pretty badly. I had to fill out an incident form and the guys on reception were telling me that the previous year a woman had fallen after swinging from the light fittings, and sued, she got €35,000 :rolleyes:

I was going to reply after the first line saying not a hope, then I read the second part.:(

RobbingBandit · 25-07-2012 08:47PM

As a great man once said, "To Alcohol the cause of and solution to all of life's problems."

jumpguy · 25-07-2012 08:49PM

Really, I think a lot of these idiotic suits are partially out of grief as well as greed - trying to find blame for something, anything else besides the deceased. Nobody just throws away this money on legal costs, and I can think of a few tragic instances where people sell off massive amounts of their wealth to pursue a case they wish existed.

McCrack · 25-07-2012 08:54PM

You see litigation keeps people on their toes, the threat of it keeps occupiers (such as this hotel) vigilant to make sure their premises are safe for their guests and their systems in place (such as policies & security) are also responsible as can be to protect silly humans from accidentally injuring or worse killing themselves.

without knowing the full facts and circumstances of this accident I can't comment except to say its more likely than not that the hotel failed in its duty of care to this drunk lady hence the civil action by the next of kin.

V_Moth · 25-07-2012 08:54PM

3ndahalfof6 wrote: »

it was not the fall that killed her it was the sudden stop, if she was served to much liquor they might be in a pickle, they don't like that sort of thing over there.

"A regrettable air-ground interface."

wyndhurst · 25-07-2012 09:12PM

In the US, most States have clear laws (known as Dram Shop laws) that govern the sale of alcohol in bars. The establishment clearly broke the law and did not maintain their responsibility towards the safety of their patron by serving her alcohol when already intoxicated.

I know I will get slated for this....but, we in Ireland have a perverse view of alcohol consumption that colours even our view of this tragic case.

Chuck Stone · 25-07-2012 09:15PM

The hotel should counter-sue gravity.

Lady dies after falling while sliding down a bannister; family wants to sue the hotel

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