PHILADELPHIA, Oct. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The attorneys at Eisenberg, Rothweiler are representing members of the Sannuti family who were thrust into the national spotlight earlier this week after being trapped at the Sheraton Hotel during a violent and scary confrontation involving dozens of guests. Vincent Sannuti, age 57, was eventually able to escape the melee with his adult children, but collapsed just outside the hotel and later died at the hospital from a stress-induced heart attack. The brawl was caught on video and has gone "viral" after being posted on the Internet.
On the night of the incident, Mr. Sannuti had attended the wedding of his niece, Nicole Sannuti. The wedding reception was held at a venue on Broad Street in Philadelphia. Mr. Sannuti, accompanied by his four adult children and son-in-law, went back to the Sheraton Hotel in Philadelphia's Society Hill neighborhood, where the Sannuti's families and friends were staying, to help carry some of the wedding gifts, say goodnight to family members, and primarily because Mr. Sannuti's car was parked at a nearby parking lot. Mr. Sannuti was not a guest at the Sheraton Hotel and was not staying overnight.
Shortly after they arrived, Mr. Sannuti, his four children, and son-in-law, were confronted inside the hotel by an out-of-control, drunken mob of hotel guests. "We understand that the combatants may have been either the invited guests of two separate wedding parties being held at the Sheraton or the invited guests of one wedding reception being held at the Sheraton where a dispute arose between guests," said Dino Privitera, one of the family's attorneys. " We do know that two groups of the hotel guests had been engaged in escalating violence, and Sheraton employees apparently had called for police assistance, even before Mr. Sannuti and his immediate family had arrived at the hotel. When the violence between these two groups finally erupted, there was pandemonium and chaos with literally dozens of people fighting and indiscriminate violence all around Mr. Sannuti."
"We want to emphasize that our clients, Mr. Sannuti, his four children, and son-in-law, were not in any way associated with the two warring wedding parties inside the Sheraton. We understand that these people were wedding guests who had been celebrating at a separate and unrelated wedding reception at the Hotel, were already staying at the Hotel, and their conflict had nothing to do with Mr. Sannuti and his family, and had been brewing for some time before Mr. Sannuti arrived at the Hotel. Mr. Sannuti, his kids, and son-in-law were not perpetrators of any violence, but rather victims of it," Dino Privitera said.
When police finally arrived and confronted the angry mob with Tasers and batons, Mr. Sannuti and his family made their escape from the madness and melee inside the hotel. Just outside the hotel, Mr. Sannuti collapsed in the arms of his children and died from a heart attack at the hospital a short time later. There is also real concern regarding whether Mr. Sannuti received prompt and adequate medical care outside the Sheraton.
"Based on the information we have now, we do believe that the Sheraton employees had grossly over-served and grossly under-secured an unruly and drunken crowd of guests which had been attending a separate and unrelated wedding reception at the hotel earlier in the evening. We believe there were guests at the reception that got into a heated dispute and then became involved in screaming matches, pushing and shoving, physical confrontations, and fights for some period of time before Mr. Sannuti's arrival, and that the growing tension and escalating violence between these two groups erupted into a full-fledged brawl in the hotel's bar-restaurant which then spilled into the main lobby," Dino Privitera said.
"Mr. Sannuti feared for his safety, did his best to get out of harm's way and tried to protect his family. They were innocent bystanders and fully expected to be safe from this kind of violence," added Stewart Eisenberg, a senior partner in the firm representing the Sannutis.
Sadly, Mr. Sannuti died on his birthday, in front of his four children, and on a day he was celebrating his niece's wedding.
About Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg and Jeck, PC
The firm has earned the reputation as one of the premier personal injury firms in the region, having achieved multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts on behalf of catastrophically injured individuals and their families. The attorneys at Eisenberg, Rothweiler are respected, experienced, and skilled advocates handling difficult cases and achieving outstanding results for their clients. For more information, visit www.erlegal.com.
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