PENNSYLVANIA RECORD

A North Jersey man who claims he suffered a broken nose at the hands of a Philadelphia

hotel security officer has filed an assault and battery claim against the man, the business where the alleged incident took place and the security firm that employs the agent involved in the altercation.

Sundar Dhamotharan and his wife, Shakira, of Hackensack, N.J., are suing the Hyatt at the Bellevue, located at 200 S. Broad St. in downtown Philadelphia, as well as Philadelphia-based Bellevue Associates, Chicago-based Hyatt Corp., Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust, Conshohocken, Pa.-based Allied Barton Security Services and security officer Bruce Coley, over an alleged altercation that took place between Coley and the male plaintiff two summers ago.

The complaint, filed July 9 at the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas by Linwood, N.J. attorney Richard A. Stoloff, states that the plaintiffs, who were overnight guests of the hotel back on July 18, 2010, attempted to regain entry to the place of lodging at about 1 a.m. after a night out when they came across Coley, who had been guarding the door.

Despite showing Coley their room keys, the plaintiffs were not granted admittance to the hotel, the lawsuit claims, with Coley physically denying them access to the premises.

When the couple again attempted to set foot inside the hotel, the suit claims, Coley began to verbally harass and humiliate the plaintiffs by inquiring as to how much they paid for their room, whether they were wealthy and making derogatory comments about Indians; the couple are of Indian descent.

The plaintiffs eventually gained admittance to the hotel, at which time Sundar, the husband, went over to the front desk to inquire about filing a complaint regarding Coley’s treatment of the plaintiffs.

When Sundar attempted to get Coley’s name for purposes of filing the complaint, he was suddenly punched in the face by the security officer, the lawsuit alleges.

The injuries caused severe injuries to Sundar’s face, the suit states, including a fracture requiring surgery and lip contusions.

The complaint claims that Sundar has suffered, and continues to suffer, pain and humiliation as a result of the incident.

The man has also incurred financial damages relating to the medical treatment of his injuries, the suit states.

The lawsuit contains assault and battery claims against Coley, as well as negligence claims against all of the named defendants.

The couple seeks $50,000 in compensatory damages as well as litigation costs.

 

The case ID number is 120700971.