ST. LOUIS — Kansas City-based Davis Bethune & Jones LLC won a $177 million judgment against the St. Louis Hyatt Regency at the Arch, after a jury found that the hotel didn’t follow its rules in hiring a man who sexually assaulted a guest.
The victim was a sheriff’s deputy from New Jersey who was visiting St. Louis in 2016 to attend a crime scene investigation seminar. A colleague asked the hotel to check on her. Security guard David A. White used his master key to enter her room, found her sleeping and left. Soon afterward, he returned and sexually assaulted the woman.
White pleaded guilty to first-degree burglary and misdemeanor sexual abuse in the case. He was sentenced to probation.
After learning that White had a disturbing record of convictions before being hired as a security guard, the victim hired Davis Bethune & Jones to sue Hyatt Regency.
Hyatt argued that it shouldn’t be held liable for White’s actions, according to court records.
White’s record includes convictions for second- and third-degree assault, third-degree domestic assault, and operating a vehicle while intoxicated resulting in injury, all before Hyatt Regency hired him, according to the lawsuit.
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