Brenda K. (Layman) Smith and John C. Smith v. Dunn Hospitality Group Manager, Inc. d/b/a Comfort Inn
2016 Ind. App. LEXIS 367
| Ind. Ct. App. | 2016Background
- Brenda and John Smith were guests at a Comfort Inn after a house fire and stored personal items, including an insurance draft, in their room and gave the draft to hotel management for placement in a safety deposit box.
- While the Smiths were detained in August 2012, hotel employees allowed an unauthorized third party (Crawley) access to their room; Crawley removed the Smiths’ belongings.
- The hotel later gave the contents of its safety deposit box (including the insurance draft) to another unauthorized person (Warren); the Smiths subsequently recovered the draft from Warren.
- The Smiths sued the hotel for negligence under the Innkeeper Statute, alleging the hotel facilitated the theft.
- The hotel moved for summary judgment, arguing the Innkeeper Statute caps its liability (at $200 for personal property) and thus bars greater recovery; the trial court granted summary judgment for the hotel.
- On appeal, the Smiths argued the hotel’s conduct constituted facilitating a theft/criminal act and an intentional tort, making the statute inapplicable; the court rejected that contention and affirmed summary judgment.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether the Innkeeper Statute bars greater recovery for loss of personal property when hotel employees allowed unauthorized access to a guest's room | Smiths: Hotel agents facilitated theft/committed an intentional tort or criminal act, so statutory liability caps do not apply | Comfort Inn: Statute governs; liability for personal property is capped at $200 under I.C. § 32-33-7-3, and no evidence of conspiracy or intentional wrongdoing removes the statutory limit | Court: Held the statute applies; no genuine factual dispute that would show hotel conspired in the theft, so summary judgment for hotel affirmed |
Key Cases Cited
- Williams v. Tharp, 914 N.E.2d 756 (Ind. 2009) (definition of material fact and summary judgment standards)
- First Farmers Bank & Trust Co. v. Whorley, 891 N.E.2d 604 (Ind. Ct. App. 2008) (appellate review standards for summary judgment)
- AutoXchange.com, Inc. v. Dreyer and Reinbold, Inc., 816 N.E.2d 40 (Ind. Ct. App. 2004) (role of findings in summary judgment appeals)
- Plant v. Howard Johnson’s Motor Lodge, 500 N.E.2d 1271 (Ind. Ct. App. 1986) (discussion of historical innkeeper liability and property infra hospitium)
- Minneapolis Fire & Marine Ins. Co. v. Matson Navigation Co., 352 P.2d 335 (Haw. 1960) (historical origins of strict liability for innkeepers)
- Mooney v. Anonymous M.D. 4, 991 N.E.2d 565 (Ind. Ct. App. 2013) (statutes in derogation of common law construed narrowly)