Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California
Do we have any recourse?
My boyfriend and I rented a hotel room close to home as a sort of getaway evening. I ran into an aquaintance who had gotten into a really big argument with her boyfriend and was kicked out with nowhere to go. We offered to call the police for her but she was not interested in involving them. I offered her our hotel room since we were not far from home and I didn't want her to be stranded. My boyfriend had only reserved that hotel room for one night. The next day she was able to extend the room without my boyfriends consent (he was not there to present ID or sign for the extension). Later that day the girl was arrested for soliciting sex from an officer. My boyfriend happens to be on parole. His parole officer took him into custody for ''endangering a minor'' because his name was found on the hotel room the girl was in. He now has to deal with a parole violation for this misunderstanding. Do we have any recourse against the hotel for allowing someone other than the registered guest (and a minor at that) extend the room in his name?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Do we have any recourse?
Probably not. For purposes of this answer I'll overlook the parts of your story that are hard to believe and assume that what you have said is true.
Even if the hotel was negligent in letting your friend extend her stay, its negligence did not cause your boyfriend's arrest. Negligent parties are liable for the reasonably foreseeable consequences of their actions, and hotels generally can't tell which guests will be turning tricks in their rooms. Even where there is negligence the intentional act of another will usually break the causal chain and cut off the negligent party's liability for anything that happens as a result of the third party's actions.
Your friend intentionally solicited the officer, and the hotel almost certainly did nothing to make her do that. It is not at fault for her crime and therefore is not liable for the consequences. (It probably is liable, though, for any additional room charges beyond what your boyfriend agreed to pay.)
So, is your friend liable? Again, probably not. It isn't her fault that your boyfriend is on parole, and she probably had no idea that her actions would get him arrested -- unless he warned her to be careful, in which case he probably did cooperate with her as the police say.
Your explanation of what happened will probably not convince the police. I'm not really convinced myself, though I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt. Even if you believe your boyfriend was not involved in your friend's activities I think you should re-evaluate the situation and ask yourself why so many convenient elements fell into place for your friend.
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