You may remember that back in the early morning hours of the first day of 2011, a New Year’s partygoer from California fell to his death from the roof of a Las Vegas Resort. Tragically, history repeated itself this year as the calendar charged on the Strip.
Around 3:45am on New Year’s Day, a 21-year old man from Corona, California reportedly fell about five stories to his death near the tennis courts at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. The man was pronounced dead about 6:15am at a nearby hospital. Metro Police are investigating the incident, but have not yet determined if it was accidental or intentional – or whether the man was impaired.
Last year’s New Year’s death was ruled an accident caused by intoxication when a 25-year old Pomona, California man tumbled about five or six stories from a roof at Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino and landed on another rooftop. The family of that man is suing the resort, claiming that the area from where the victim fell should have been blocked off or better marked.
High-rise deaths are nothing new in Las Vegas. But even when these falls are ruled as accidental, surviving family members still often file wrongful death lawsuits against the property owners and managers. These resorts and hotels have a duty to protect the safety of their guests, and while they can’t anticipate every possible scenario, they do have to take what are considered to be reasonable steps to prevent such tragedies from taking place.