Widow Wins $31.27 Million After Husband’s Death at Cancun Resort

Fort Worth, Texas — A jury has awarded $31.27 million to the widow of a man who died while celebrating his 10th wedding anniversary at the Royalton Chic resort in Cancun, Mexico. The verdict came after the jury found the hotel negligent in the case of Elijah Snow, 35, who passed away in July 2021.

Jamie Snow filed a lawsuit in June 2022 against RCM Hotel, its parent company Blue Diamond Hotels and Resorts, and a travel agency that was later removed from the case. On June 10, Tarrant County District Judge Melody Wilkinson oversaw the trial leading to the unanimous verdict.

According to court documents, the couple arrived at the hotel on July 18, 2021, and began drinking soon after. After a night of enjoying drinks, Jamie Snow went to their room and fell asleep, while Elijah intended to finish his drink. Jamie later awoke around 3:30 a.m. to discover he was missing and alerted hotel staff and authorities.

Elijah was later found stuck in a small window of a neighboring property, suffering from severe bruises and scratches. The medical examiner ruled that his death was caused by suffocation.

Dallas attorney Wes Bearden, representing the Snow family, commented on the verdict, stating, “We’ll likely never know all the details of Elijah’s tragic death, but we do know that the Royalton contributed to that tragedy with utter disregard for his safety.” He added, “This verdict will not bring Elijah back, but perhaps it will cause this resort and others to become more responsible for their practices.”

RCM Hotel and Blue Diamond denied any wrongdoing and claimed that jurisdiction to hear the case was not established. They maintained that any damages resulted from actions outside their control.

As of Thursday, attorneys for RCM and Blue Diamond had not replied to requests for comment on the verdict.