Econo Lodge in Longmont is dealing with a lawsuit after workers allegedly gave a room key to a person accused of coming into an occupied room and brutally attacking two girls staying on the lodge.
Nicole Gallegos and her mom, Carol Gonzales, are suing the lodge for negligence, together with negligent hiring, retention, supervision and infliction of emotional misery, in addition to intentional infliction of emotional misery, premises legal responsibility and legal responsibility for the staff’ actions as brokers of the lodge.
The 2 girls, with illustration from Haltzman Regulation Agency, filed a criticism in opposition to the lodge at 10811 Interstate 25 Frontage Highway on June 5. The criticism accuses the lodge of recklessly failing to make sure the security of their visitors, failing to observe security insurance policies reminiscent of proscribing room entry to visitors and hiring unqualified people.
On Jan. 3, Gallegos occupied a short lived resident room, rented by Gonzales. The 2 had a visitor, 31-year-old Cody Czichos, go to the room to eat pizza and watch tv.
Throughout Czichos’ go to, he started appearing irrationally and unpredictably, leading to each girls asking him to depart. On the time, he agreed to depart.
The 2 girls mentioned Czichos misplaced his steadiness and repeatedly packed and unpacked his backpack whereas within the means of leaving. He then left the room with the door secured behind him.
The ladies by no means communicated to workers of the lodge that Czichos ought to have entry to their room nor did they offer him a key card to entry the room, the criticism mentioned. He was not a registered visitor of the lodge nor was he listed in reference to the room.
Within the night, two workers, Socorro Salacar and her husband, Michael Tussey, had been working on the entrance desk of the lodge.
Czichos returned to the lodge and approached the desk. He requested Salacar and Tussey for a pen and a bit of paper. Each workers noticed Czichos write on the paper whereas muttering threatening statements. In addition they indicated Czichos virtually fainted throughout this preliminary interplay.
Tussey mentioned in a police report that Czichos was clearly intoxicated and that Czichos mentioned he took a whole lot of Xanax, a prescription sedative that’s generally abused.
The lawsuit argues Salacar and Tussey had been explicitly conscious of Czichos’ altered psychological state, along with his “ominous statements.” Each knew he was a possible risk, however they took no motion.
After displaying intoxicated habits within the lodge foyer for 45 minutes to an hour, Czichos requested a key card to entry Gallegos and Gonzales’ room.
The lawsuit accuses entrance desk workers, together with Salacar and Tussey, of not checking Czichos’ ID to substantiate if he was a registered visitor, not cross-checking the room reservation with a reputation offered by Czichos and never calling the occupants of the room to substantiate if he was an invited visitor.
After the workers handed over the important thing card, the criticism states, Czichos walked to the room and entered the door. Upon coming into the room, he and Gonzales started to argue. Czichos then slapped Gonzales throughout the face, in response to the lawsuit.
Gonzales positioned a name to the entrance desk of the lodge, requesting workers name 911 due to Czichos’ habits. Round this time, Czichos exited the room.
Instantly after Czichos departed, Gonzales left the room, secured the door behind her and ran to the entrance desk to ensure he was now not within the constructing.
When Gonzales noticed Czichos within the lobby, he grew to become irate as soon as once more and charged at her, in response to the criticism, throwing punches as he ran previous her and the entrance desk. Workers then ushered Gonzales away to a separate room.
Czichos, utilizing the important thing card, returned again to the room the place Gallegos was nonetheless situated. Gallegos woke as much as Czichos on prime of her with a knife in his hand and threatening to kill her, the lawsuit states.
The blade missed Gallegos’ throat, and her chin was slashed within the wrestle to get away. Czichos then reduce by Gallegos’ hand as she raised it to defend herself from his blade, which slashed by and utterly severed the entire tendons in her thumb, in response to the lawsuit.
Czichos is accused of stomping on Gallegos’ head, knocking out one in every of her enamel, chipping one other and inflicting a traumatic mind harm. He broke eight of her ribs with a kick, the criticism mentioned.
After the assault, Czichos fled the lodge. Shortly after, he was arrested by Weld County Sheriff’s Workplace deputies.
He faces fees of tried first-degree homicide, third-degree assault and home violence. He stays in custody on a $100,000 bond.
Czichos will seem for a disposition listening to at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday in Weld District Courtroom.
Contained in the lodge room, Gonzales and Salacar discovered Gallegos wrapped in a blanket, cowering on the bottom and bleeding profusely. The room had blood smeared throughout a number of surfaces, together with a pool of blood between the 2 beds.
“Whereas it might have been Czichos wielding the blade in opposition to Plaintiff, it was Defendants and their workers that simply wanting actually opened the door to the Room to allow the vicious assault to happen,” the lawsuit mentioned.
A entrance desk worker on the Econo Lodge advised the Tribune the lodge’s attorneys are advising they can’t talk about the open case. He did, nonetheless, point out the lawsuit was spreading lies about what occurred on Jan. 3.
The victims are requesting a jury trial.