Wounded veteran mocked at Best Western


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MONAHANS, Texas ? Staff Sgt. Chad Staples was serving as an Army sniper in Baghdad in April 10, 2007, when his convoy was ambushed.

Staples, a 2002 graduate of Jay High School in Maine, was serving his second tour of duty as an Army Ranger in Iraq. During the firefight that followed the ambush, he provided cover fire for a downed soldier and then used his body to shield that soldier and a medic when they were going back to the truck. A bullet pierced Chad Staples? body armor and paralyzed him from the waist down, his father said.

But Staples, who is a recipient of the Bronze Star Medal for Valor, said when a Best Western employee in Monahans mocked him and laughed at him when he asked for help down the stairs from his third-floor hotel room because the elevator was broken, he questioned the nation for which he fought.

?I didn?t need to be carried down the stairs, let?s get that clear," Staples said. "I needed somebody to help me get my bags and wheelchair down the stairs. I?ve never had that bad of a day where I?m just randomly rude to someone ? and the consequence is that (someone is) stuck at the top floor of a hotel.?

Although Best Western has issued a corporate statement offering an apology and has called Staples several times, he said he was not yet accepting their apology.

A corporate news release stated that the company had apologized to Staples and refunded his hotel bill, as well as expressed the company?s support for the armed forces and promised that its branches strive to ?ensure that all our guests are treated with dignity and respect."

The Monahans News reported hotel owner Andy Patel said staff could have injured Staples if they attempted to help him. Patel also told The News that hotel policy is to call EMS to request help, but he was not sure why that policy was not followed.

?This is a very unfortunate thing,? Patel said to The News. ?I have worked very hard in Monahans for 30 years.?

Patel told The News that when he checked Staples in, Staples had no problem being on the third floor, and that other rooms were unavailable because Staples was checking in earlier than the 3 p.m. check-in time.

Staples said several Best Western-representative calls have included excuses and one seemed a sincere apology with the willingness to change. But it?s not enough.

?Apologies mean nothing. Actual actions mean everything,? Staples said. ?Nothing has changed. They haven?t fired that woman and they haven?t changed their policies.?

An emailed statement attributed to Craig Smith, director of communications for Best Western International, stated that they believed in a call from a senior vice president, Staples ?expressed there was nothing further he expected on our end,? which Staples denied. However, Staples said he had no interest in a lawsuit.

Staples? father, Bob Staples of Jay, Maine, said he was appalled when he learned of his son?s story.

?Whether he?s military or not, he has a disability," Bob Staples said. "You don?t treat anybody like that, but you certainly don?t treat someone with a disability like that. He gave up his ability to walk to save the life of another person. And he did; he saved the lives of other people.?

Chad Staples said the exchange with the employee began six hours after he checked into the hotel to rest on his trip from California to North Carolina, where he lives.

When he woke up, rolling blackouts caused the elevator to be shut down, and he called the front desk to ask for help.

The woman who answered mocked his request, Staples said.

?She said, ?Are you serious??? Staples said. He answered, ?Yes, I?m in a wheelchair.?

Then Staples said she retorted, ?What do you want me to do about it?? causing him to hang up the phone.

When he spoke with a manager, Staples said the man claimed he couldn?t do anything.

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That's incredible. As the father said, it doesn't matter if he was ex-military or not, you don't go mocking another person's disability like that.

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Wonder how many disabled people they treated this way before he stood up for himself, usually this is a symptom of an ongoing problem, not a one time "bad day" issue, so I'm glad he's pushing it as far as he is

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I'm sorry but this is a complete non-story. A random person was rude to a random person; the company who employed them apologised and gave him a refund. The only reason this is a news story is because it serves an agenda.

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As someone previously stated, ex military or not you never make fun of someones disability, its disgusting. :(

I work for a hotel right now, and I can guarantee you that if one of our employees did this they would at the very least be fired, and our hotel would likely be sued for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

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I work for a hotel right now, and I can guarantee you that if one of our employees did this they would at the very least be fired, and our hotel would likely be sued for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

Employee being fired should be an automatic thing based on that act and general human decency but I suppose the sueing would be if the "victim" for lack of a better word, wanted to take it that far.

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I'm sorry but this is a complete non-story. A random person was rude to a random person; the company who employed them apologised and gave him a refund. The only reason this is a news story is because it serves an agenda.

What they did to him is not only rude and insensitive, but also illegal under the ADA. They are supposed to make every reasonable effort to accommodate disabled guests. Finding some way to get his luggage and wheelchair back down so he could check out is certainly a reasonable request.

Employee being fired should be an automatic thing based on that act and general human decency but I suppose the sueing would be if the "victim" for lack of a better word, wanted to take it that far.

That's true. But being that both the employee on the phone (front desk clerk, I'm guessing) and the manager both refused to help, I think most people would file a lawsuit in that case.

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I'd never, ever mock someone for a disability.. not only is it just wrong, heartless, and cruel.. but I'm a strong believer in karma! I'd never want anything like that to happen to me.

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That's true. But being that both the employee on the phone (front desk clerk, I'm guessing) and the manager both refused to help, I think most people would file a lawsuit in that case.

Yeah good point!

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What they did to him is not only rude and insensitive, but also illegal under the ADA. They are supposed to make every reasonable effort to accommodate disabled guests. Finding some way to get his luggage and wheelchair back down so he could check out is certainly a reasonable request.

But that doesn't make it any more newsworthy. It is only being reported because it serves an agenda - he's not described as a disabled person; he's a "wounded veteran". It's another pro-military fluff piece.

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Oh PUH-leeaassee!! Pro-military fluff piece? Pull your head out of it. The case is just as strong thatit's a pro-handicapper rights piece.

As someone previously stated, ex military or not you never make fun of someones disability, its disgusting. :(

Totally agree - this is absolutely disgusting. The employee and the manager who shrugged off her behavior need to be fired.

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But that doesn't make it any more newsworthy. It is only being reported because it serves an agenda - he's not described as a disabled person; he's a "wounded veteran". It's another pro-military fluff piece.

What the **** is your problem? Do you really resent the military that much? They are reporting facts. Deal with it.

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How about some simple common decency? this guys life is changed forever irregardless of what he was involved in. This nation never changed, they spit on my now dead father when he came home from vietnam. how about putting politics aside you sick *******s and step across the line and perform some act of common decency?

as a disabled vet, I don't expect much more than an act of human kindness in everyday life. what the hell happened to human decency? this is the problem today. everyone is so wrapped up in themselves. animals treat each other better then people treat each other.

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Just because the government forgot your dad doesn't mean you will. Stop demanding respect and you might live a healthier life. Trying to convince anyone to give a **** about others these days is nearly impossible.

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Just because the government forgot your dad doesn't mean you will.

He said nothing about the government. In case you aren't old enough to know this, people *literally* spit on Vietnam veterans when they came back from there. How much more disrespectful can you possibly get? Most of them had no choice but to go there, many against their will, yet they were often treated as mass murderers, or worse.

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Just because the government forgot your dad doesn't mean you will. Stop demanding respect and you might live a healthier life. Trying to convince anyone to give a **** about others these days is nearly impossible.

I never said anything about demanding anything. I said I'd like a little bit of common decency.

I teach my kids to treat others as you'd like to be treated. be kind and courteous to others. Therein lies the problems of humanity. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, we are definitely living in the end of days.

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as a disabled vet, I don't expect much more than an act of human kindness in everyday life. what the hell happened to human decency? this is the problem today. everyone is so wrapped up in themselves. animals treat each other better then people treat each other.

What human decency did you offer to the people you murdered or helped to murder?

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He said nothing about the government. In case you aren't old enough to know this, people *literally* spit on Vietnam veterans when they came back from there. How much more disrespectful can you possibly get? Most of them had no choice but to go there, many against their will, yet they were often treated as mass murderers, or worse.

Of course they had a choice. If you were a conscript, and not everyone was, then you could do the right thing or you could go to war. Sure, you faced prison or a life on the run if you refused to fight but the cowardly option was to go and kill the Vietnamese to make your own life easier. Estimates put the number of dead in Vietnam in the millions and anyone who participated in it contributed to what can only be described as a mass murder.

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Of course they had a choice. If you were a conscript, and not everyone was, then you could do the right thing or you could go to war. Sure, you faced prison or a life on the run if you refused to fight but the cowardly option was to go and kill the Vietnamese to make your own life easier. Estimates put the number of dead in Vietnam in the millions and anyone who participated in it contributed to what can only be described as a mass murder.

I registered just so i could comment on your attitude. I bet you have the same attitude towards police, fire and medical personnel. I hope something happens to you in the future which requires the aid of those you so despise so karma can kick into full effect and you end up being removed from this planet. You are the type of person that gives everyone a bad name. Mr. Internet Troll.

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I registered just so i could comment on your attitude. I bet you have the same attitude towards police, fire and medical personnel. I hope something happens to you in the future which requires the aid of those you so despise so karma can kick into full effect and you end up being removed from this planet. You are the type of person that gives everyone a bad name. Mr. Internet Troll.

You bet wrong but thanks for your reasoned argument :rolleyes: You and others like you might like to think that there's nothing wrong with invading countries for no good reason and killing people in mind-blowingly large numbers but not everyone agrees with you.

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What human decency did you offer to the people you murdered or helped to murder?

excuse me please. I never pulled the/a trigger or shot at anyone ever. I was blessed to never have to do that. I agree, we have murdered millions. but you should point the finger at the leaders of the nation that send the warriors to do the dirty deeds.

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