Central Florida hotel deaths: Lawsuit claims owner failed to maintain safe environment

Florida hotel accused of contributing to deaths

FOX 35 News is investigating a hotel in Altamonte Springs that’s now accused of "letting open and continuous criminal activity on its property."

ALTAMONTE SPRINGS, Fla. - FOX 35 News is investigating a hotel in Altamonte Springs that’s now accused of "letting open and continuous criminal activity on its property."

On Tuesday, Joy Bardwell-Kittrell placed 21 roses and 21 candles on an easement directly outside the Altamonte Springs Hotel & Suites to mark the age her daughter Amber would have been that day.

"Her last words to me were, 'I love you. I'll call you next week,'" the grieving mother said.

Feb. 6 marks two years to the day since a deputy and chaplain came knocking at Bardwell-Kittrell’s door.

"I dropped to my knees, and I screamed," she recalled.

Records from the Altamonte Springs Police Department show Amber Bardwell Kitrell was one of five people to die at the hotel in 2022.

"I lost all my hopes and dreams that day," Joy Bardwell-Kittrell told FOX 35. "I lost a piece of me."

The day before the anniversary of her daughter’s death, Bardwell-Kittrell filed a lawsuit against the hotel.

"The people that own this place need to be held accountable," said Bardwell-Kittrell. "There needs to be justice for my daughter."

The complaint Joy Bardwell-Kittrell’s attorney filed alleges, "The Hotel created an environment that encouraged, enabled, and promoted criminal activity." The lawsuit argues the owners of Altamonte Springs Hotel and Suites, operating as Uptown Inn and Suites of Altamonte, LLC, had a duty to maintain a reasonably safe environment but failed to do so.

Police records show officers were called out to the hotel about 650 times the year Amber died and 650 in the two years leading up to her death. The lawsuit claims if the hotel’s owners put a stop to the drug deals, prostitution, and other crimes police have been called to the hotel for, Amber might still be alive today.

MORE HEADLINES:

Shannon Snedaker, a partner at Snedaker Law, one of the law firms involved in the suit against the hotel, told FOX 35 she believes the tragedy of Amber's death was preventable.

"We hope that Amber receives some measure of justice and that this lawsuit will ensure that The Altamonte Springs Hotel & Suites no longer enables and facilitates such egregious conduct," said Snedaker.

FOX 35 News asked the hotel owners to talk but was told they had no comment and asked to leave.

We talked with Altamonte Springs’ City Manager, who said the City is concerned about the hotel.

"It's heartbreaking at times," said City Manager Frank Martz. "We want people to have better housing. And that's why we're working very forcefully with the owner of the new owner of that property to improve it."

Records from the City of Altamonte show citations at the hotel that have gone up to the Code Enforcement Board several times, resulting in tens of thousands of dollars in fines. The citations cover things like structural hazards, fire prevention issues, broken gates, broken lights, trash, abandoned vehicles, and more.

"Part of the challenge at this particular site is that it is along I-4," explained Martz. "I-4 is a corridor for crime throughout Florida."

The lawsuit says Amber died after doing drugs her boyfriend had found lying around at the hotel. They thought it was cocaine, but it turned out to be fentanyl, the complaint says.

The lawsuit alleges the property owners knew about "drug drops" happening on the premises.

"The Altamonte Springs Hotel & Suites had a duty to protect its patrons from the risk of unreasonable harm," said Lisa Haba, a partner at The Haba Law Firm, the other law firm that jointly filed the suit. "Instead of taking reasonable measures to provide a safe, crime-free environment, they created a crime sanctuary where drugs were sold, distributed openly, and without deterrence."

Bardwell-Kitrell says she wants the hotel shut down.

"I care that this is still going on. I care that my baby died here, and they don't care. This is a dangerous place."

Martz says things aren’t that easy; the hotel serves as housing of last resort for several families. The city doesn’t want to kick many kids to the curb. Plus, Martz says that although the property owner has a responsibility to maintain the site in a clean and safe way, the activities of people living there are not automatically the property owner’s responsibility.

Martz says people don’t always tell police about issues happening at the hotel, but he thinks more reporting of crimes could be helpful in reducing issues there.

"We're not there all the time, nor can we be. It is private property. So if you see something of concern, call 911 or call the non-emergency number."

Joy had brought her concerns to the City before. She spoke at a City Council meeting in 2022 and plans to do the same on Tuesday.