LAS VEGAS, NV — Seeking to avoid liability in the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history, MGM Resorts International is suing hundreds of victims of a gunman who rained gunfire down on a concert crowd from his hotel room at the company’s Mandalay Bay casino-resort in Las Vegas last year.
In lawsuits filed in Nevada, California, New York and other states this week, MGM argued it has “no liability of any kind” to the shooting victims and their families and said it should be shielded under a federal law passed in 2002 after the 9/11 terror attacks.
The SAFETY Act — Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Technologies Act — was passed by Congress in 20002 to shield hotel and concert venue owners from liability. In its lawsuit, MGM is arguing that Contemporary Services Corp., which it hired to provide security for the Oct 1, 2017, country music festival on the Las Vegas strip, has liability
The vendor is among those approved by the Department of Homeland Security “for protecting against and responding to acts of mass injury and destruction,” and MGM claims that absolves it of any liability in the shooting.
High-stakes gambler Stephen Paddock fired from his 32nd floor suite at the Mandalay Bay into the crowd of about 22,000, killing 58 people and injuring hundreds more. He killed himself as police closed in.
More than 2,500 people have either sued or threatened to sue MGM and its subsidiaries, the company said. Its lawsuit, which names more than 1,000 victims who voluntarily dismissed their lawsuits. Those with active lawsuits aren’t named.
“If defendants were injured by Paddock’s assault, as they allege, they were inevitably injured both because Paddock fired from his window and because they remained in the line of fire at the concert,” MGM wrote in the lawsuits. “Such claims inevitably implicate security at the concert — and may result in loss to CSC.”
MGM is asking the court to declare that federal law “precludes any finding of liability” against the company “for any claim for injuries arising out of or related to Paddock’s mass attack.”
Attorneys representing victims of the massacre rebuked MGM for the tactic.
Attorney Catherine Lombardo, who is representing hundreds of victims, told CNN that MGM is “absolutely liable” because it allowed Paddock to enter the hotel with multiple weapons and then booked him on the 32nd floor.
“We are shocked,” she said, adding that the SAFETY Act “was not designed for this.”
Las Vegas attorney Robert Eglet, who is representing about 1,000 victims, told the Associated Press he has been flooded with calls from victims.
“This is absolute gamesmanship. It’s outrageous. It’s just pouring gasoline on the fire of [the victims’] suffering,” Eglet said. “They are very distraught, very upset over this. MGM is trying to intimidate them.”
In a statement, attorney Brian Claypool, who was at the festival and represents dozens of victims, said in a statement to the AP that the lawsuits are a “hypocritical” maneuver that will turn into a “public relations nightmare for MGM.”
“We collectively view this as a bullying tactic to intimidate the survivors who are rightfully seeking social change and redress through the litigation process,” he said.
MGM spokeswoman Debra DeShong said Congress determined that federal courts should handle any lawsuits over mass attacks where federally certified security services were provided, the AP reported.
“While we expected the litigation that followed, we also feel strongly that victims and the community should be able to recover and find resolution in a timely manner,” she said in a statement.
The Associated Press contributed reporting.
Lead photo: People scramble for shelter at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival after apparent gun fire was heard on Oct. 1, 2017 in Las Vegas, Nevada. A gunman has opened fire on a music festival in Las Vegas, leaving at least 20 people dead and more than 100 injured. Police have confirmed that one suspect has been shot. The investigation is ongoing. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images)
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