Hotel owner sued after patron falls down flight of stairs

MARSHAL - A Louisiana man has filed a lawsuit against the owners of a Comfort Inn claiming that they failed to warn him that the carpet was wet, which caused him to fall down an entire flight of stairs. 

Walter Steele filed suit against Laxmi Lodging Inc. on Oct. 12 in the Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division.

The incident occurred on Sept. 9, 2012 as Steele was attempting to exit a Comfort Inn in Palestine, Texas, owned by the defendant by the way of the staircase when his foot slipped on the wet flooring causing him to fall down an entire flight of stairs and onto the concrete floor.  The fall caused Steele serious and permanent disabling injuries to his back and spine.

According to the lawsuit, the hotel had washed, shampooed or cleaned its carpets prior to Steele’s arrival and left them in a wet and slippery condition without any warning to Steele.

The defendant is accused of negligence for failing to inspect its premises to be sure that they were free of unreasonably dangerous conditions, dry its floors after cleaning, limit access to areas in which the floors were not yet dry, warn its invitees of the existence of the wet floors, select and hire competent contractors in such a way as to ensure that they were not creating an unreasonable risk of harm to invitees.

The plaintiff is seeking damages for medical expenses, lost earnings, physical impairment, pain, suffering, mental anguish, and lost earning capacity.

Steele is represented by James A. Holmes of the Law Offices of James Holes P.C. in Henderson.

U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap is assigned to the case.

Case No. 2:12-cv-00653