LANCASTER – According to a pair of plaintiffs, they were struck by a wooden beam which fell from the ceiling, as they were dining inside a local hotel restaurant.
John Stafford Skehan of Lancaster and Mary Campbell Skehan of Columbia, S.C. filed suit in the Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas on Oct. 16 versus Aimbridge Hospitality, LLC of Plano, Texas, Lancaster Marriott At Penn Square and Marriott International, Inc. of Bethesda, Md., Hawk Industries, Inc. of Littlestown, the Redevelopment Authority of the City of Lancaster, Doe 1, Doe 2 and John Does 3-15.
“On or about Oct. 24, 2021, plaintiffs John Stafford Skehan (“Jack”) and Mary Campbell Skehan (“Mary Campbell”), were lawfully present, as business invitees, seated at a dining table inside Plough restaurant, which is located within the Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square, in the City of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Jack Skehan and Mary Campbell Skehan are related as brother and sister,” the suit says.
“Aimbridge operates the hotel and restaurant complex (doing business as “Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square”), in the city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania. It is believed, and therefore alleged, that Aimbridge owns the leasehold improvements upon land owned and leased to Aimbridge by the Redevelopment Authority, City of Lancaster. Aimbridge operates approximately 1,500 hotels and restaurants worldwide under license agreements with various brands.”
The suit adds that Aimbridge owns the leasehold improvements and business assets of Plough, a restaurant that is within the Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square complex and operates the Lancaster Marriott at Penn Square under franchise, or license, agreement with Marriott.
Furthermore, the suit explains that Marriott permits Aimbridge to use ‘Marriott’ and Marriott’s trademarks on buildings, signs, invoices, menus, stationary, etc., by a contract between the two, giving the public the reasonable belief that Marriott operates the subject hotel complex – and that Hawk Industries, by direction of Aimbridge, designed the interior of Plough restaurant, to include the wooden beams attached to the ceiling
“Upon information and belief, Aimbridge approved Hawk’s design for Plough restaurant, that included wood beams attached to the ceiling. Plough restaurant was designed, and built, with approximately sixty decorative wood (or, faux wood) beams attached to the ceiling of the dining room. On the aforementioned date, one of the beams detached from Plough’s ceiling and fell, striking Jack Skehan, who had been seated at a table in the dining room. Seated at the same dining table, and within the ‘zone of danger’, was Mary Campbell Skehan, who was grazed by the beam and witnessed the wood beam fall upon her brother, Jack,” the suit states.
“Upon information and belief, business entity, or person, Doe No. 1 was subcontracted by Hawk to install the wooden beams on the ceiling of Plough restaurant. Upon information and belief, presently unknown business entity Doe No. 2 was the manufacturer of the wooden beams that were installed on the ceiling of Plough restaurant. Upon information and belief, presently unknown business entities, or persons, Does 3-15 provided various services, or performed various actions, or failed to correctly perform certain necessary actions, all of which may have contributed to the wood beam falling from the ceiling of Plough restaurant. As a direct and proximate result of the incident, both plaintiffs were injured, with Jack sustaining lifelong injuries.”
For counts of negligence, wantonness and negligence – zone of danger, the plaintiff is seeking damages in excess of the jurisdictional minimum of the Court, plus interest, costs, attorney’s fees and any other relief that the Court deems just and proper.
The plaintiff is represented by Steven D. Guinter of Dillsburg and J. Nathaniel Holmes of Boles Holmes White, in Birmingham, Ala.
The defendants have not yet obtained legal counsel.
Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas case CI-23-07346
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com