MGM sues Vegas shooting victims in push to avoid liability, page 1

MGM Resorts International has sued hundreds of victims of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history in a bid to avoid liability for the gunfire that rained down from its Mandalay Bay casino-resort in Las Vegas.

The company argues in lawsuits filed in Nevada, California, New York and other states this week and last that it has “no liability of any kind” to survivors or families of slain victims under a federal law enacted after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Well, at least they waited a little bit before suing the victims so they cannot be sued in return. The lawsuit will not affect any active lawsuits by the victims against MGM.

In short, they are alleging that because there was a concert there, and a third party company was providing security, and that company, Contemporary Services Corp., was federally certified at the time of the shooting, under a 2002 law there should be no liabilities for mass shootings when a company or group uses services certified by the US Department of Homeland Security. Sound complicated?

“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. Such claims inevitably implicate security at the concert — and may result in loss to CSC,” according to the MGM lawsuits.

So, because they were standing in line for the concert, and CSC was doing security for the concert, and it was in the CSC line for the concert, and they are federally registered, no one should be able to sue for MGM liability.

But it is not getting taken well, by the courts nor by the victims, and it will most likely backfire on MGM. I guess it's a calculated risk between a PR loss and money loss to victims.

Brian Claypool, an attorney who was at the music festival during the shooting, called the lawsuits 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,” Claypool, who represents dozens of victims, said in a statement.

Attorney Robert Eglet, who represents victims in a lawsuit pending in federal court in Nevada, also decried the casino operator’s move, saying the company is filing complaints nationwide in search of a sympathetic judge. He told AP 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.”

Associated Press

I'll wait to see where this goes, but I'm pretty sure MGM just persuaded me not to ever stay there.

Thanks for reading.