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Date: 07-19-2020
Case Style:
Case Number: 3:20-cv-05075-RBL
Judge: Ronald B. Leighton
Court: United States District Court for the Western District of Washington (Pierce County)
Plaintiff's Attorney:
Defendant's Attorney: David Sager and Anthony Todaro
Description: Tacoma, WA - A.T. sued the Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Inc. and Choice Hotels International, Inc. on a civil rights violation of the 18 U.S.C. 1595 relating to sex trafficking of children.
Plaintiff claimed that the Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, which also owns the hotel brand Super 8 among others, is a prominent hospitality chain with more than 9,000 hotels and resorts worldwide.
Unfortunately, Wyndham also profits from exploitive on-demand pornography and is being sued by the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) Law Center for facilitating underage sex trafficking.
On-Demand Pornography
After advocacy from the National Center on Sexual Exploitation, Hilton Worldwide, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Marriott Hotels, and Starwood Hotels and Resorts have all have made the decision to remove on-demand, in-room pornography from all their hotels. InterContinental Hotels Group has made it a brand standard to prohibit the distribution of pornography in all its hotel chains, globally.
However, Wyndham continues to sell on-demand pornography, despite customer complaints and outreach from NCOSE. Themes of pornography sold by Wyndham include teen, incest, racism, and extreme violence.
Research shows that pornography is linked to increased sexual violence as well as other public health issues. We urge Wyndham Worldwide to discontinue distributing and profiting from pornography and join us in fostering a world free from sexual exploitation. Federal laws prohibit much of the hardcore pornography Wyndham profits from. Learn more about these laws here.
Sex Trafficking Case
The National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE) has taken a significant step forward in bringing a measure of justice to survivors of sex trafficking. NCOSE is co-counsel on a case that was filed against nationwide hotel chain Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Inc. and others for knowingly facilitating the sex trafficking of a 16-year-old girl beginning in 2014. Our pleadings allege that for years, the girl was trafficked in and out of several hotels owned by Wyndham and other chains in Santa Clara County, California. The young girl was forced to perform commercial sex acts with ten to fifteen men a day.
Through hotel staff and employees, Wyndham and the other hotels knew or should have known that Plaintiff B.M. was being trafficked for sex due to, but not limited to:
large amounts of used condoms, empty lube bottles, and other sex-related items in the hotel room; payments for the rooms in cash;
Plaintiff’s physical appearance (malnourished, bruised, beaten)
a continuous procession of older men entering and leaving minor Plaintiff B.M.’s room;
excessive requests for sheets, cleaning supplies, room service
the personal relationship between the front desk employees and Plaintiff’s traffickers
Wyndham financially benefited from the sex trafficking of this young woman, and other victims like her, and developed and maintained business models that attract and foster the commercial sex market for traffickers and buyers alike.
In recent months, many other lawsuits have been filed against Wyndham Hotels for facilitating and profiting from the sex trafficking/prostitution of dozens of women and girls. See below for a sampling of these lawsuits and recent news coverage highlighting Wyndham’s compliance in the brutal exploitation of vulnerable individuals.
Outcome: 06/19/2020 Case has been electronically transferred to the USDC for the Eastern District of Washington, per 42 Order. (GMR) (Entered: 06/19/2020)
06/19/2020 43 TRANSFERRED CASE opened in the Eastern District of Washington as case 4:20-cv-05100 on 6/19/2020. (GMR) (Entered: 06/19/2020)
Plaintiff's Experts:
Defendant's Experts:
Comments: