DoubleTree is one of the Hilton company’s mid-range hotel brands, advertised as a sophisticated and comfortable hospitality option available in hundreds of popular tourist cities. While Hilton owns the brand name, local franchisees own and operate individual DoubleTree hotels.
These franchise owners, and to some extent Hilton itself, are legally responsible for making sure each DoubleTree is as safe for guests as it can reasonably be. Unfortunately, they don’t always succeed at this.
Below, we’ll go over some of the common reasons you might need to sue a DoubleTree by Hilton. If at any point you would prefer to speak directly with a lawyer, feel free to reach out by phone or chat.
Multiple DoubleTree Guests Have Fallen to Their Deaths
Most of the time, a tragedy that looks like a “freak” accident on the surface is actually part of a traceable pattern. Guests might not know what dangers to expect when checking into a hotel, but hotel owners typically know exactly what kinds of accidents are likely to happen. They know because those accidents have happened before, if not in that particular hotel, then in one like it.
How a hotel chooses to manage those known dangers directly affects how likely guests are to get hurt, or worse.
For example, most hotels windows higher than ground level are built to protect against falls. They open only partially, if at all, and they’re either thick enough or high enough off the floor to prevent a stumble from becoming a multi-story plunge. If a hotel instead provides weaker or lower windows in high-rise guest rooms, there’s a greater chance of an accident.
At least a couple of DoubleTree hotels have had accidents in the last decade or so that arguably should not have been possible with modern building standards.
In 2014, a man was found dead on the ground outside a DoubleTree in Montgomery, Alabama. Investigators determined that he had fallen from one of the floors above, and his death was ruled an accident.
Three years later, another man fell from the window of his 11th story DoubleTree room in New Orleans, Louisiana. Witnesses say he was bumping into the window as a joke, when the glass failed.
DoubleTree’s Child-Friendly Water Attractions Have Claimed at Least Two Lives
The on-site water parks at some DoubleTree locations have a similarly troubling track record.
Just half a year ago, in March of 2024, an 8-year-old girl disappeared while swimming with her family in the lazy river at a DoubleTree in Houston, Texas. It took a team of specialists over 12 hours to retrieve her body, which had been crushed deep into a pipe no more than 16 inches across. An inspection of the pool found multiple health and safety violations, including a malfunction that caused the pipe to suck water in, instead of pushing water out as it was designed to.
As horrific and extreme as the details of that incident are, it’s not the only one of its kind on a DoubleTree property.
Back in December of 2016, another 8-year-old drowned at the indoor water park of the DoubleTree in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. He reportedly struggled briefly, sank, and could not be resuscitated.
Compared with other types of aquatics facilities, hotels already tend to struggle with making sure children receive adequate supervision while swimming. When a hotel chooses to expand beyond a standard swimming pool, it needs to consider carefully whether it can truly handle the responsibility of running a water park.
It’s Taken Too Many Warnings for DoubleTree to Start Using CO Alarms
Carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning is another type of disaster that may seem random to an outside perspective, but hotel owners know the dangers and what it takes to keep guests safe. CO is a colorless, odorless, lethally toxic gas produced during the burning of natural gas, propane, gasoline, and other fuels. Malfunctioning appliances and leaky ventilation systems can allow dangerous quantities of CO to build up in living spaces. Preventing this requires regular maintenance of both appliances and CO detectors.
Last year, in July of 2023, a DoubleTree in Boston, Massachusetts had to evacuate over 500 guests in the late evening due to dangerously high levels of CO. Fire crews were able to trace the gas to a utility room and shut off power to the machinery, causing the CO to drop to safe levels.
This incident was certainly alarming, and it serves as a reminder that CO leaks can happen at any time and in any place where fuel-burning equipment is in use. At the same time, a lot of what happened in Boston was best-case scenario. The hotel was equipped with CO detectors, which functioned properly and alerted the occupants to the danger before anyone could suffer symptoms. The evacuation was prompt and thorough, and the staff notified the proper emergency services in a timely manner.
This hasn’t always been how DoubleTree hotels have operated, however.
Back in December of 2006, a father and son were discovered unconscious in their room at the Doubletree Grand Key Resort in Key West, Florida. They were both taken to a nearby hospital, where the father responded to treatment. His 26-year-old son, however, died without regaining consciousness. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death as CO poisoning.
Working CO detectors have been widely available since the mid-1990s, meaning this man’s death could easily have been prevented. Worse still, an investigation into the incident revealed that another family had fallen ill six days earlier while staying in that same guest room. The medical center that treated them identified CO as the cause and notified the hotel of the possible problem. The hotel apparently ignored this warning.
Even now, there’s no guarantee that an individual DoubleTree will be as prepared to handle CO leaks as the Boston location. There’s still no federal law requiring CO detectors in hotel rooms, and Hilton’s franchise structure allows for a great deal of variance in how local franchisees manage their DoubleTree properties.
Hotels Like DoubleTree Are Responsible for Providing Appropriate Security
Just like freak accidents, freak acts of violence are actually quite rare. Most of the time, crime follows predictable patterns, or comes with early warning signs. Hotels have a duty to gauge the likelihood of various kinds of violence toward guests and provide security accordingly.
Arguably the greatest threat hotel guests need protection from is each other. Among other issues, hotels are common staging areas for both domestic violence and gang violence.
In October of 2023, a naval officer celebrating a promotion at a DoubleTree in Jacksonville, Florida allegedly punched his girlfriend three times in the face after they left the hotel’s restaurant for their room.
Three years earlier, one man stabbed another in the lobby of the DoubleTree in Culver City, California. Witnesses say the attacker had been harassing guests for a while before the stabbing, specifically asking them about their gang affiliations.
Hotels also have a duty to make sure their own staff members do not pose a threat to the guests.
In June of 2019, a bartender at the Berkeley Marina DoubleTree in Berkeley, California was arrested for drugging a guest’s drink, entering her room, and raping her.
Hotels can help reduce the risk of these kinds of incidents in several ways, including:
- Requiring photo ID upon check-in.
- Maintaining visible surveillance cameras and good lighting in public areas.
- Employing security guards, if necessary.
- Limiting physical access to the property with secure gates and doors.
- Responding promptly to aggressive or threatening behavior from employees and guests alike.
- Encouraging and responding positively to victim requests for help.
If you’ve been harmed by violence at a DoubleTree, don’t be fooled into thinking the venue had no power over what happened to you.
Every Location of Every Brand Must Be on the Lookout for Signs of Sex Trafficking
When hotels ignore violence, it’s not always because they’re oblivious, focused on guest privacy, or even trying to save money on security. Sometimes, it’s because certain types of violence are profitable.
Sex trafficking in hotels has been commonplace for hundreds of years, but holding hotels accountable for their participation and complicity was almost unheard of in the U.S until the last five years.
A DoubleTree in Portland, Oregon was actually one of the earliest hotels to be sued for sex trafficking, back in 2017, two years before the first major waves of lawsuits against Hilton and the other hospitality giants. The plaintiffs were the family of a woman who was found dead in the stairwell of the hotel the day after Christmas of 2014. Her suspected pimp was arrested and convicted of first-degree manslaughter.
Once sex trafficking lawsuits became more common, another woman also came forward about being trafficked out of a DoubleTree in Portland, and a third brought similar complaints against a DoubleTree in Houston, Texas.
Since then, DoubleTree hotels have shown a little more inclination toward protecting sex trafficking victims, although that isn’t saying much.
In November of 2020, the staff of a DoubleTree in Norwalk, Connecticut called the police to report that a man kept returning to the hotel with a different underage girl each time, but only after he had done so seven times over the course of two months. Police eventually arrested the man, as well as the girls’ suspected pimp, and identified three of the girls. One of them reported that the man was so loud while abusing them that he could easily be heard in the hallways.
The next year, a woman staying at a DoubleTree in Tampa, Florida called an anti-trafficking nonprofit to report that she had been lured there with promises of a modeling job and then ordered to work as a prostitute. Members of the nonprofit were too far away to reach her before her pimp was due to return, so they called the front desk. Thankfully, the staff in that instance agreed to hide the victim until help could arrive.
If you have also been sexually exploited in a DoubleTree by Hilton, and the staff failed to respond to obvious signs that you needed help, you may well have a case against the owner, or even Hilton itself.
What to Do If You’ve Been Harmed at a DoubleTree by Hilton
One of the first things you should do after any serious accident or violent altercation is speak with a qualified attorney. Practically speaking, however, there are a few other tasks you might find yourself needing to take care of first:
- Getting to safety. If you’re in an actively dangerous situation, this is always the first step.
- Getting medical care. Even if your injuries don’t seem to require emergency treatment, it’s a good idea to get an exam as soon as possible after an attack or accident, to check for hidden damage and establish a formal record of your condition.
- Preserving evidence. Some time-sensitive opportunities to document the incident may come up before you’ve had a chance to speak with a lawyer. If you can, it’s a good idea to take pictures of the incident site and save any messages that confirm where you and any involved parties were. If the incident was criminal in nature, you should also file a police report.
Once you’ve checked off the applicable steps on that list, it’s time to start looking for a lawyer.
The Stoddard Firm has experts in personal injury, wrongful death, premises liability, negligent security, sex trafficking law, franchise law, and the unique laws that govern the hospitality industry. We’re committed to enforcing accountability for big companies whenever possible, and to getting our clients the full compensation they deserve, whether that means suing Hilton, a regional franchise owner, or another party that might not be immediately obvious.
To learn more in a free consultation about your case, reach out any time at 678-RESULTS, or through our online chat function.
Attorney Matt Stoddard
Matt Stoddard is a professional, hardworking, ethical advocate. He routinely faces some of the nation’s largest companies and some of the world’s largest insurers – opponents who have virtually unlimited resources. In these circumstances, Mr. Stoddard is comfortable. Mr. Stoddard provides his strongest efforts to his clients, and he devotes the firm’s significant financial resources to presenting the strongest case possible on their behalf. Matt understands that his clients must put their trust in him. That trust creates an obligation for Matt to work tirelessly on their behalf, and Matt Stoddard does not take that obligation lightly. [ Attorney Bio ]
