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Reprieve for hotel linked to death of US tourists

SUPREME

The Supreme Court of Kenya. FILE PHOTO | NMG

A boutique tourist lodge in Mount Kenya forest reserve has secured a temporary relief in a legal dispute involving payment of Sh37 million damages to an American tourist whose wife and one-year-old daughter were killed by an elephant 10 years ago.

Castle Forest Lodge Hotel on Tuesday obtained an order from the Court of Appeal suspending execution of a High Court judgement in which the tourist was awarded the damages.

However, the appellate judges directed the hotel to deposit within 45 days a sum of $150,000 (Sh16.6 million).

The money will be in a joint interest-earning account in the name of the advocates’ firms representing the hotel and the tourist Jeffrey Brown, a resident of New Hampshire in the US.

In a ruling made by a three-judge bench comprising justices William Ouko, Wanjiru Karanja and Martha Koome, the bank account will be maintained as interest-earning until the appeal filed by the hotel is determined or upon further orders of the court.

In default of depositing the money, the judges said the hotel's application for suspension of the High Court judgment will stand as automatically dismissed.

In the ruling, the appellate court said the lodge has an arguable case against the High Court decision dated June 22, 2018.

"We find the one single ground raised by the applicant (hotel) that challenges the findings of the trial Judge is that the applicant was wholly answerable for the accident and apportioned it the total liability," said the judges.

The lodge moved to the court of appeal after justice Jairus Ngaah found it was guilty of negligence leading to the death of the two people who were trampled by an elephant.

Nature walk

The tourist, his wife and baby were attacked during a nature walk in the forest reserve on January 4, 2010. His brother Richard Levert and wife Elizabeth Carton were also with them.

They were staying at the lodge, which assigned Mr Ibrahim Maina as their tour guide. The judge found that the tour guide was not qualified to offer the services.

The guide led the hotel guests into an elephant’s habitation, where they were attacked by a jumbo.

“This danger was inevitable and it eventually manifested itself when the purported guide led the hotel guests into an elephant’s habitation. It turned out to be a death trap,” said justice Ngaah.