Family Of Woman Who Died Sliding Down Hotel Banister File Lawsuit

She was a grown woman who chose to get drunk and chose to try to slide down a banister. Her choice. There are consequences to getting stupid drunk and doing stupid shit. Sure, it’s a damn shame she died, but it was HER choices that led to HER death.

Darwin Awards Winner.

I understand they are in pain and it has been hard. But she did that to herself. I hope they win enough money to over what they lost in the funeral. That’s it. And I don’t think they should win.

Money money money money, MONEY, sing it with me, money!

“Two years ago we reported on the death of Megan Duskey. She was the 23-year-old special education who tried sliding down a stair’s banister during a Halloween party and plunged four stories to her death.”

This sentence confuses me. Is it supposed to be special education ‘teacher’ or do I just not understand the joke, which is possible.

I was disappointed to learn that, too.

When are people going to accept responsibility for their own dumb actions?

drunk before she got there im sure

I’m fairly certain he corrected it after Angel’s Mom posted.

never know when Bannisters kill… gotta ban those now..and parking garages

We have become such a sue happy country it’s not even funny. Nobody wants to accept responsibility for their actions (or the actions of their loved ones) anymore. Always looking for a scapegoat.

He did.

She was a close friend:

One thing I read that made me want to slap my forehead.

Luvshorror”When are people going to accept responsibility for their own dumb actions?”

Do you not understand that Megan is no longer alive, therefore has more than accepted responsibility.

Diane
“We have become such a sue happy country it’s not even funny. Nobody wants to accept responsibility for their actions (or the actions of their loved ones) anymore. Always looking for a scapegoat.”

I want to make sure this is very, very clear. Suing is american and it is a GOOD thing. If they sue then it is more than clear there is a reason for it– in fact if the judgement is found in their favor then it is clear that the business was in the wrong. If they lose, they have to pay court fees and move on. When the average person sues that means that there is something wrong and more than likely there was negligence several times over. The biggest example would be the girl that spilled coffee on her lap and sued McDonalds– Read/study this case in depth (the coffee was too hot) and you will have a new outlook on how suing works, and also understand that there is plenty of stuff the media doesn’t know. In no way did the woman like the idea of suing, but it had to be done in order to pay for her medical expenses. I can go on and on about tort, but it is people like you who are giving people less power and the gov’t big business what they want, more money and more shortcuts. Period.

Sam
So, to sum up – putting on a fancy costume does not mean you automatically have superpowers? Huh. Noted.

–Who died that you knew I’d love to make a joke about them. She slid down plenty of rails before without a superhero costume and so have you and I.

Well she seems to know it all– Sam
‘Kay… i’ve had some epic drinking s:essions, but getting to the ‘i can fly!’ stage within 30 minutes? Not going to happen. So are they sueing the party organisers for not realising how drunk she would already be before the party began or something? And they’re sueing the hotel for installing such a tempting looking banister rail? *eyeroll*

– Oh you were with her and knew how much she drank? You may want to do more research and find out what exactly was at play. She was going for a cigarette. People fall and die more than guns, and a lot of times it is the business’s fault. Whether the rail was too short, or they neglected to buy enough security to monitor every room(both of which sound like a reasonable request). I can not even begin to act like I know what they are suing for. But more security, and higher rails can save lives. You also forget how many milions they throw around and how most of it does not go into safety, just profit. I’m not saying I’m right, just saying you are an asshole and have little to no idea what you are talking about. Period.

What you don’t get is businesses care about profit and profit only that they neglect certain aspects and put people in immediate danger. 500k is nothing and it is a slap on the wrist. 500k seems like a lot, but it isn’t and they will only have to pay the 500k IF they deserve it. It isn’t in their bank account. Also keep in mind them suing only makes parties like that a much safer place to be. If they lose the settlement, they lose 500k which is only a slap on the wrist to them.. And guess what.. I know it is hard to believe, but instead of making fat profits the company is going to have to hire more security guards making parties that you and you kids go to will be safer, and guess what the company will STILL make fat profits… Hence why suing is a good thing.

CT
Money money money money, MONEY, sing it with me, money!

– 10 times out of 10 I bet you will say they’d give all their money to have their daughter back.

Pyncky
Darwin Awards Winner

– You would not be saying if you knew her. She had one lapse in judgement and it cost her and us dearly. We have all slid down rails before, and since then I have seen several times where people do it. You don’t need 4 stories to kill yourself, you just need to fall.

I don’t know I can kinda go on forever.

She was a great, beautiful girl. The way the people who created these posts did nothing but make her look like a dumb, greedy, blonde which shame on you guys. At least find out the whole story and don’t make a girl into a joke. What she did was not smart, but don’t you think it was harder us to get over the fact?

She had a great job that she loved and cared deeply about her (mentally handicapped)kids in her class. I remember her telling me a couple of stories about “her kids” and I remember how saddened they were to find out Ms Duskey will never be back.

I’m sorry, but no, I have never slid down a railing, although I have earned a JD. I’m sorry that you have suffered the loss of your friend, but I strongly disagree that the hotel owes the family damages. Your belief that businesses can endure any level of liability and still enjoy “fat profits” is ludicrous. I’d suggest reading “Liability” by Peter Huber, and maybe talking to a business owner who actually has to pay for liability insurance. I suspect you’d find it a real eye opener.

Floored, even?

How can anybody be held responsible for the misuse of a stair railing other than the person who misused it? An adult should have better sense and obviously most do we’re not splattered four stories below. A special ed teacher eh… seems more likely behavior from a student.

You suck…I laughed.

I guess the world needs to surround everything with butterfly nets and bubble wrap. Then we’ll only have Yeti’s reach-arounds to worry about.

I smell natural selection at work.

“When Bannisters Kill” is a new series on the Oprah network.

Are you fucking kidding me? They are suing for what? Her fucking stupidity? The hotel should be suing the family! I’m sure it cost them customers from the bad press and I’m sure they had to pay for cleanup.

I’m going to start a group: NATIONAL LEAGUE OF CITIZENS AGAINST LAWSUITS WHEN THE DEATH OR INJURY WAS CAUSED BY THE INDIVIDUALS OWN STUPIDITY.

Goddamn greedy ass mother fuckers out there and slimy ass attorneys who take their cases…..

No, it doesn’t. But drinking, putting on a clown suit, going boom down the stairs could POSSIBLY make your family rich.

Reach around be damned, The wifes sister and I perfected the sloppy dragon this summer, its what set them Arabs off.

Stiffy if natural selection was real, your people would still be knuckle swimming the steaming Bayou Backward Banjo Bogwaters.

That was due to the shock when I saw Yeti’s family reunion pictures.

Man, how I love Louisiana.

It’s all good.

No where else (save the ‘peg ) can you wander aimless, man boob at the ready and willing to grab ankle for a cold half tray of undercooked crosseyed crawdaddys.

Well said!

WON’T SOMEONE PLEASE THINK OF THE TWENTY-THREE YEAR OLDS?

Is that the same as a jelly donut?

pretty much.

You’re referencing of Hot Coffee in relation to this case is ludicrous. In every example that movie details, the companies sued were negligent (yes, including McDonald’s and the hot coffee incident). No one named in this lawsuit was responsible for Duskey’s death, nor did they contribute to it via negligence.

By your logic, a family of a skateboarder who died after falling off a stair’s railing he was grinding should be able to rightfully sue because a security guard wasn’t there to stop them or because the rails were grindable in the first place.

Businesses should not be held accountable for someone’s “lapse in judgement” that caused them to use something in a manner it was not intended and in a way that someone equipped with basic common knew could cause injury or death. I would count sliding down a banister four stories up as one of those types of situations.

I hate that Huskey died in the manner she did. She seemed like one of the good ones. But if I were on the jury and their reasons for suing are the ones being reported, I wouldn’t award her parents a dime.

It’s the society we live in now. It’s always someone else’s fault.

But then they just lie there, not moving or complaining……. I see your point.

Didn’t the Mardi Gras social committee name a genital boil after you three years running?

Maybe after we get you freshened up and off the mechanical bull we’ll get you on down for that dreamin demon variable valve timing pork belly turbo slide.

Come on now, everybody knows “Genital Boil” is the name of your jazz band that opens Fat Tuesday every year.

Will do.

lol…

wow dude im sorry your friend died, but why should the hotel pay her family? im sure everyone is sad and hurting and they want to blame someone. but the person to blame did it to herself. she was an adult and knew what she was doing. and no i have never slid down a bannister.

Fuck her. I would.

When she’s dead!? You’re fucked up!

Don’t be lazy Yeti. Everyone knows fluffing is frickin’ awesome!

I don’t think you know what my logic is, because I have not been close to clear on it. I am saying that she is being painted the exact same way as the coffee girl(she still is the punchline to many jokes). That is the only reference I was making, and it is sick the way people are slamming her when they truly don’t know her or the exact details. I have no stance on whether they deserve the money or not. That is not for me to debate, but suing is American and it is a GOOD thing. If people get sued there is usually a good reason behind it, since in fact you have to go to trial. I am pretty sure everything is not out on the table and there very well may be more to this case. So instead of shunning them, dig a little deeper and realize there may be something you aren’t seeing, or haven’t seen yet.

Honestly Morbid what I’ve learned from the case I’ve learned from your post here and apparently we don’t know anything. This was one of the better ones, so thank you for that…I do know the gruesome details of exactly what happened at 10:30, because her cousin who confirmed her dead explained everything to me that very morning after no sleep.
I am not even going to begin to say that I think it is right or wrong that they are suing and neither should you guys.. I am pretty sure that that is the point I have been trying to convey. And its not just because she was my friend, we should have this type of thinking with every case.. If they are suing there is obviously something there and if there is nothing there, well looks like they lost the case, and we could move on.
If you were in the jury you would be listening to all the evidence and make an informed decision when everything is laid out there. “You wouldn’t give them a dime.” Is not only premature it is also why you aren’t going to be a juror.

I get what you are saying, but I don’t think that the case is necessarily as you describe it. I have to guess that there are several other varied things..

I would counter sue for dragging down the name of whoever.

I’ll make another long one.I have had several comments below. if you haven’t read everything I said some things may not make sense.

Let me also say this. I knew her. I don’t know her parents and I know as much as you guys about the case(nothing) What I am doing is coming up with all of the reasons why they are at fault. Once again this has nothing to do with the argument of she chose to go down the rail. That is fact we all know this. It is even harder being her friend and having to come to terms with what she did. So let me explain that you guys. A lot of you are just hearing about this story now and it is a lot easier to call her stupid when you don’t know her. She was NOT stupid.

Below is what I can come up with for reasons of why it would be their fault. I AM NOT HAVING AN ARGUMENT about what I say below. I’ll play a mini lawyer. So please don’t think that I am on either side I just want to bring this type of stuff to the light..

Lets take this into consideration:

There were 2000 drunk idiots(calling them that, because thats what everyone seems to call megan) in attendance, much like every year.

You get all the booze you want

Security guards were hired to watch said drunk idiots.
–if yes then: This dispels the myth that 23 year olds don’t need to be babysat.

ok so what happens. Everything is going fine. bam someones dead. Well what happened? she fell. How? She was in a good mood and she was sliding down the rail. What rail. This one https://encrypted-tbn2.google.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQb9uhV2IbbDX5PSWo5ywn5b9sXSG99MwJEAJRL4Z6C4P2E5D66JA (Not confirmed, there are several others on google images, it was this one or one very similar) She tried to slide down that? I’m pretty sure she’d like that split-second back(insert hateful mean comment here, I can’t)..

Well if its my hotel I certainly wouldn’t want that happening again..AND THIS IS WHERE WE START GETTING SOMEWHERE.

Could this have been prevented? Can we prevent this from happening in the future?

(prevent is the KEY WORD and only word that should matter)
The answers are both simply yes. Here is why.

–Was there a security guard in the room? Better yet was he positioned by a place where people have the potential to fall or hurt themselves? If we put him there would that have prevented her falling down the rail. Maybe… So it is kind of a stalemate. A security guard should definitely come into question.

–The rails. They look great, but when you have 2000 drunken idiots coming every year to the same party… Well what is that staircase doing open. It was in a secluded area. That area is a danger zone period. Here is why. And don’t say it is stupid, it is more than possible and probably has happened. Two drunk idiot dudes, one of them 6’5 horsing around on the stairs and he other buddy says. Git out of own pushes him lightly. Not good timing, that 6’5 guy was not standing balanced. That little nudge pushed the guy backwards, and tragically he tripped over the railing and fell to his death.

Falls are a leading cause of death. Have you read this chart. When people are at your staircase they are increasing their chance of dying. Keeping in mind had there been elevators, or a higher railing, there would be no risk.
http://danger.mongabay.com/injury_death.htm

We now have a murderer and a dead kid. Could we have prevented it?

I’d say yes,

The staircase supposedly was in secluded area as well(I can not confirm this) Putting it out of use during the party sounds like it could have easily happened. This would have prevented both 6’5 and Megan from dying

6’5 is real because we can only assume it will happen again. When you put 2000 drunk kids by a staircase good things will never come from it. Period.

Everyone openly knows that there was alcohol and drugs and a bunch of drunk 20 somethings who don’t even know their name. This is a fact. Megan did know her name when she died(I can not confirm that she wasn’t black out) But from knowing her I’d say she wasn’t since it was 10:30. Assuming my little Angel Meg wasn’t, it makes it even more likely that someone who is BLACK OUT drunk can fall off of it. I’m not here to argue this point because this is how I feel about it –What difference does it make, she is dead. So her being drunk or not is really not up for debate anyways.. because that is what she was going there to do.

She was going there to be another one of those 2000 “drunk idiots.” She paid over $100 to get in and really loved it. She really loved it until she fell. Which gets us back to.. We have 2000 drunk idiots coming to get hammered and we have a couple of potential spots that is somewhat dangerous to the daily crowd, but it can only get increasingly deadly with alcohol and more importantly “drunken people with superpowers” Remember it is halloween..

Will more of these “drunken idiots” try to slide down the rail. I would venture to say yes. Will most of them succeed. Probably. Can it happen again. Probably.

So there are a couple of angles right there.

–it is confirmed that there will be 2000 drunken idiots at PHH for halloween.
–The staircase and alcohol poisoning are the two risks that these drunken idiots have to deal with. The stairs are necessary to use in order to move yourself from one room to another. This is not the same as killing yourself with your glass somehow(there is a very big difference between the two).
–The rail could be moved to be higher. This will prevent any chance of another possible fall. Which we now know CAN happen. If you know anything about anything. If it has happened once it will happen again. Period.
–Prevention. Knowing that the stairs are a threat to drunken idiots. Do we close the room off, put up a sign, or even better make a much safer rail system.

This case is NOT about the Duskeys being greedy and wanting me. I can’t even begin to speculate to what their motives are behind it. But I am looking at this case from an unbiased perspective. You are so busy reaming them out you don’t see the potential benefits are to this case.

If the Duskeys win the case that is a win for the people. Safety around staircases and preventing deaths like this one is my exact focus now. Countless lives are already saved due to technological advances, and who knows. They win this case, force PHH to change their rail system. What does PHH do? Invent a whole new rail system and become the leaders in safety. Something that would be great PR.

My last and final thoughts are. You guys need to stop looking at the couple little juicy details that are given and understand that there is way bigger implications on this case than you think. A lot of you ought to be ashamed of yourself. For being so mean. I’m a strong as mofo, but reading some of your comments was extremely hurtful and you would not like it if you knew her. You should feel bad. But you should also EDUCATE yourselves on the subject rather than saying they shouldn’t get a dime.

Do I think they should get paid? Simply I do not know, neither do you, not enough info. I am tired. I am not trying to argue or say I’m right I am just pointing stuff out. I know just as much about the case as you guys do(once again..nothing).

My money has them rejoicing at the thought of a break from your peanut butter underwear.

Stiffy always says its tougher to be the fluffer, theres little doubt though he’s the rover after it’s over,

“I saw her as a beautiful girl who had a lapse in judgement for a split second…”
That moment of a lapse in judgement was stupidity. We’ve all had them but not had to pay such a high price for the most part. Your friend was physically beautiful and I will take your word that she was beautiful inside, as well. It is not the hotels fault, or the event planners or any of the other party guests she fell to her death. it doesn’t matter that she alawys did this. Her luck ran out this time and it was no ones fault but her own. It’s sad and a horrible way to die and I’m sorry her life was cut short but that doesn’t make anyone else liable for her choice. This lawsuit is not about my safety or anyone else’s. Maybe that’s what her family are telling themselves but I don’t buy it. It’s a poor coping mechanism in this case that just opens them up to more scrutiny.

And you’re a poet and didn’t know it eh?

Most definitely it’s the bunnies that are lucky!!

Nope. Just ask Jessica rabbit and the Duracell bunny…there’s a reason those batteries are called copper tops. Bugs Bunny has tried to have me but I won’t swing his way, not to mention that I don’t trust him…not after what he did to Thumper.

The problem with your notion of raising the rails (I assume you are referring to hand rails here) is they are mandated to be at a specific height by the Americans with Disabilities Act. (I have recently had excellent cause to become informed about the provisions of the Act.) If the hand rails are too high then they are not usable for the purpose of preventing slip-and-fall accidents by people negotiating the stairs. “Too high” varies by the height of the users. Hand rails in a military barracks, for instance, can be higher than would be appropriate for a hotel as the assumption is that everybody using that staircase would meet certain height minimums and would be, at worst, be only temporarily disabled due to accident or injury.

The same ADA already requires that people in a place of public accommodation (such as a hotel) have access to their sleeping areas and public areas such as meeting rooms. If the hotel has put all handicapped-specific rooms and meeting rooms and restaurants etc. on the first floor then there is no need for elevators; however, if there is even one public area above the ground floor then there already is an elevator to get people who cannot manage stairs to that level.

As far as security guards to protect partygoers from themselves, who should be responsible for hiring them? The hotel, or the party organizers? To put it another way, who knows the partygoers’ characteristics best — the hotel, or the party organizers?

–Al

There doesn’t have to be “obviously something there” aside from a lawyer and a company with deep pockets. The majority of the time the lawyer, and the company being sued, do not want to go to court. They are betting on an undisclosed settlement before it even gets to that point.

But I stand by what I have stated. She was drunk (or sober) and tried to do something extremely risky and stupid. She paid the ultimate price for it, sadly, but the Hilton shouldn’t have to.

Going on what you are saying, any place that serves alcohol — a bar, a restaurant, a sporting event — should be liable for any dumb thing their patrons do. Like the guy we just featured who voluntarily set his head on fire. To you, he should be able to sue because there wasn’t security there to stop people from setting themselves on fire.

“Could this have been prevented? Can we prevent this from happening in the future?”

I would say the answer is no – I would never call someone like Megan”stupid” ’cause I didn’t know her – however I would call the act she committed,which lead to her death stupid.One thing I have learned in my time on this earth is that you can’t protect people from themselves.It wasn’t the stairwell railing that killed Megan – Megan killed Megan.

I make my living doing security and I’m some what of an expert – a security guard may,or may not have been able to prevent this accident.As I have stated – one can not protect another person from them self.

Sloppy Dragon:
While getting head, once ready to cum, you bitch slap your girl in the face resulting
in a mixture of bloody nose and man spooge, also known as a jelly donut.

Now that’s nasty.

CEDDDDDD

People…We are our own worst enemies.

Shit, even I’d do Jessica Rabbit. She’s hot!

lmao… I was afraid to look at the context of that comment

I am aware what a sloppy dragon is, but hey, thanks for the refresher course. Cheque is in the mail.

So I guess the 3 guys that were going home with her that night aren’t getting sued for failing to catch her on the way down?

Dude..Are you serious…your little monologue aside..She was a GROWN woman..resonsible for her actions and herself…Maybe if she’d shown a LITTLE self-control and not gotten shit-faced maybe she’d still be alive?OR if she’d exercised a SHRED of common sense..shed have known NOT to try to power drink..Come on..How about a little personal responsibility…

How drunk could she have gotten after only 30 mins? She must have been chugging. Why should a security guard have to stand by a banister to make sure adults dont try to slide down it? We aren’t talking about toddlers. Maybe the hotel should gets gates at babies r us and put them up allover so people dont hurt themselves, outlet plugs too so adults dont stick forks in them. DON’T SLIDE DOWN BANISTER RAILS even as a child I knew not to do that…

She was so hot looking, someone should be suing God over this!?