Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard is disputing allegations by a downtown Atlanta hotel security guard that his 18-year-old daughter and her friends threw a wild party over the weekend that eventually led to the group being asked to leave.
Atlanta police spokesman Carlos Campos said officers were summoned to Twelve Centennial Park Hotel because “someone was refusing to leave the premises at the request of hotel employees.” No charges were filed.
According to a police report, the hotel security guard alleged about 30 people, all believed to be under the legal drinking age, had gathered in a room on the 14th floor. The guard, Mike Almond, said he had observed seven teenagers in the lobby who “smelled like what he believed to be marijuana” and followed them to the room, reserved by Howard for his daughter and about a dozen friends.
“Upon opening the door Mr. Almond stated he smelled marijuana,” the police report stated. “Once he stepped inside Mr. Almond noticed several bottles of alcohol.”
Almond said he asked if anyone was 21 years old and got no response. He then asked them all to leave. Howard’s daughter remained and called her father, who was staying on the 11th floor. Howard said he and his wife were chaperoning “a long-planned sleepover celebrating my daughter’s 18th birthday.”
“I arrived at the room almost instantly to find my daughter in tears and the hotel security demanding that she vacate the premises,” Howard said in a statement, adding several “uninvited guests” crashed the sleepover. “At no point did I see any evidence of any drinking nor did I see or smell any marijuana. If this had been the case, I am sure the police would have been called to the room and my daughter and her friends arrested.”
Campos said the officers “were never shown, nor did we see, any evidence of criminal activity that warranted an arrest or charges.”
Police were called after Howard learned he would be billed an extra $350 because of smoking in the room. The D.A. disputed the bill and, according to the report, refused to leave until speaking with a supervisor. He was told there was no manager on duty.
“When we arrived, we were told the issue was being resolved among the parties,” Campos said.
Twelve Centennial Park management declined comment.
“The only dispute arising out of the incident centered around a discrepancy with my bill,” Howard said. “I asked to speak with the hotel manager to discuss the incident and even asked hotel security to accompany me back to the room for an inspection. They refused both requests.”
Sean Sposito contributed to this article
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