Jeffrey E. Johnson 298 Had Nes Golan, Israel 12950 972-58-779-9688 familyofjews@yahoo August 17, 2014 J.W. Marriott, Jr. Chairman and Arne Sorenson Chief Executive Officer FOR MEDIA RELEASE Marriott 10400 Fernwood Road Bethesda, MD 20817 and Brad Honigfeld Chief Executive Officer Briad Group 78 Okner Parkway Livingston NJ 07039 Dear Mr. Marriott: I address this to you to lead this incredible fiasco to a just resolution. On July 14th, we checked in to the Residence Inn by Marriott in Islip, NY to ready our family for our Aliyah to Israel. On July 16th while loading our pets for our airline trip, we could not locate our companion and cat, Cotton. After a search by staff and us, we left the cage, Cotton’s microchip number and notification instructions, if Cotton was found. On July 19th, the staff notified us that they had indeed found our Cotton. They informed us they would be charging us for Cotton staying in room 132 of the hotel after we had checked out. We were to glad to pay these charges and did. Without my knowledge or permission Kerri Leigh Black, a manager at the Residence Inn, at some point not clear, took Cotton to her home where she apparently has multiple pets. Some eight days later, after no contact for many days, Ms. Black informed us that she had lost our family member. She also informed us she had not had time to look for the cat and she was terribly upset that it had happened and she was going to invite some friends over and have a BBQ and then maybe look for our Cotton. I wrote to Arne Sorenson and Edward Ryan about this emergency. William Dempster, your Global Compliance Officer, wrote back to me; he stated he was asked to inform us that he would investigate this matter and reminded me in his very first email that he was a pet lover. Moreover, he informed us that this Residence Inn had nothing to do with Marriott. I was contacted by David DeCicco, VP of Briad Group who stated: We will continue to visit and communicate with these shelters daily until Cotton is found. We also had a rescue cage set up near her home with Cottons food and water in it.....Please understand, that while it was not appropriate for the Operations Manager to take your cat home after your departure.... Apparently, this statement was false. They did little or nothing to find Cotton. And this purports to be a very pet friendly chain. From the beginning I requested, and then many people active in the community joined me in requesting the last location of Cotton. Mr. Dempster refused to identify the place where Cotton was lost every time. Mr. DeCicco refused until this weekend when he demanded I sign a Global Release for any liability to Briad and Marriott. If I did so, and he would tell us where Cotton was last seen. I flew from Israel to the United States this last week to search for Cotton, only to find L.I. flooded and without any means of searching for Cotton. Every request to seek cooperation from Marriott and Residence Inn and Briad has been thwarted with privacy issues. After conferring with legal counsel, I am requesting to the Chairman of the Board and all members of the Board to release immediately the location at which Cotton was last housed. On Monday, A federal complaint is being filed before Honorable Carol Bagley Amon, Chief Judge United States District Court Judge for the Eastern District of New York, and a stones throw from the Residence Inn where Cotton stayed at $250.00 per night. The complaint will seek an Emergency Order enjoining Marriott and Briad to share the information of Cotton’s last residence without further delay. In order to get this information the CEO of Briad Corp. has asked me to sign a global release of liability, thereby indemnifying Marriott and Briad of any liability, while exposing me, and all the wonderful volunteers who are helping me to locate Cotton, to law suits on almost any grounds, truthful or not.. This matter should have never gotten this far. I have known you, sir, as being the leader in the hotel business. I am a shareholder. These are your own words on your business values: At the cornerstone of our business is the philosophy, “how we do business is as important as the business we do.” Integrity and ethical behavior are part of our heritage and provide a framework for Marriott’s global operations today. For more than 85 years, Marriott has upheld a commitment to responsible business, human rights, and uncompromising ethical and legal standards in all aspects of our business. We believe our success is grounded in our purpose, values, and conduct demonstrated each day through our world-class service, ethical business practices, commitment to our associates and our culture. marriott/marriott/aboutmarriott.mi We have a long history with Residence Inn and are very familiar with your national reputation with animal right groups and being considered the #1 Pet Hotel in the World. Your own statements on pets: Pets are considered a part of the family, and devoted pet owners who travel with their cats and dogs have a discerning eye when it comes to finding the best pet-friendly hotels. At Marriott, pets are treated to the same outstanding service as human guests. No matter your reason for traveling, you can rest assured that your furry friends will enjoy a relaxing, comfortable stay in our pet-friendly accommodations. Choose Marriott, and our exceptional pet-friendly lodging will provide both you and your “best friend” with an ideal getaway. Signature service, top-notch amenities and dedication to customer satisfaction set our pet-friendly properties apart from the rest. For additional information on pet-friendly amenities at Marriott, please contact our hotels directly. Pet Fee, Weight and Breed restrictions may apply. marriott/hotel-search/pet-friendly.hotels/ Our Cotton has been missing for almost a month. The Briad Group and Marriott is well aware of federal law Animal Welfare Act as Amended (7 USC, 2131-2156) and the state law NEW YORK STATE AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS LAWS ARTICLE 26..A person being the owner or possessor, or having charge or custody of an animal, who abandons such animal, or leaves it to die in a street, road or public place, or who allows such animal, if it becomes disabled, to lie in a public street, road or public place more than three hours after he receives notice that it is left disabled, is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by imprisonment for not more than one year, or by a fine of not more than one thousand dollars, or by both. The Briad Group is proud to be a licensed franchisee for Marriott and Hilton branded hotels. Marriott is a leading worldwide hospitality company that operates and franchises the broadest portfolio of lodging brands in the world, operating in 78 countries with more than 3,800 lodging properties. “Take care of your associates and they’ll take care of the guests” was the philosophy of Marriotts founder, J. Willard Marriott. At Marriott, caring for people and the community is part of who they are. Marriott® is deeply committed to service consistency, and strives to maintain the unqualified integrity of their many brands. All Marriott® hotels are held to the same exacting standards, regardless of their ownership. briad/brands.html I would like to be hopeful that your staff will advise you of this matter that you will take this over and settle the entire outrageous matter. But since your underlings and franchise agents have not followed your policy and violated terms of your agreement with them, I ask you immediately take this matter over. Without this cooperation, we must seek relief in the media and the court. One of the attorneys who has acted pro bono this matter, contacted the SPCA this evening for warrant to intervene into the safety of our companion. Your staff are aware of professionals who will immediately put our resources to finding Cotton if correct and reliable information is provided. Withholding this information is criminal and shocking to community standards. I know when you and the Board learn of this occurrence, you will correct these wrongs and begin to restore the Marriott name. Sincerely, Jeffrey E. Johnson cc: Lucille A. Roussin, Esq. Deborah Marriott Harrison Global Officer Marriott Culture and Business Councils Marriott International, Inc. Mary K. Bush Chairman Bush International, LLC Frederick A. Henderson Chairman and Chief Executive Officer SunCoke Energy, Inc. Debra L. Lee Chairman and Chief Executive Officer BET Networks George Muñoz Principal Muñoz Investment Banking Group, LLC Harry J. Pearce Chairman MDU Resources, Inc. Steven S Reinemund [email protected] Dean of Business Wake Forest University W. Mitt Romney Former Republican Candidate for President of the United States DIRECTORS EMERITI: Sterling D. Colton William J. Shaw all media outlets SPCA Marriott Hotels, Residence Inn by Marriott, and the Briad Group who own have refused to disclose the last location of my companion Cotton unless I agree to waive any liability by all of their companies on their negligence. Facebook friends, what troubles me is for the past 3 weeks, executives at these 3 companies have all stated how concerned they were and how much they were going to do to help in our search for our Cotton (International Microchip # 985112003451332). But when I flew to Long Island this last week, no one had remember any Marriott or Briad or Residence Inn staff looking or asking about our Cotton. Which is really bizarre as maybe Marriott and Briad said to themselves, we just lie and tell him any address so they gave us Pamlico and Wildwood in Ronkonkoma, NY knowing full well this was not true. Why this charade? When this became more apparent, I threw up thinking about our Cotton and what they may have done to our precious little friend. Why this elaborate scheme and such powerful executives making these decisions. My letter to the Suffolk County Police tonight asking for a warrant: Kerri Leigh Black, Manager of the Residence Inn Islip and believed to live in Coram NY 11727, will not disclose the whereabouts of where our Cotton (my companion and family cat) as she had possession of our family member and has not notified any authority pursuant to NEW YORK STATE AGRICULTURE AND MARKETS LAWS ARTICLE 26. Officer Laveglia, we are filing a federal complaint in the US District Court next to the hotel within the next day. We will request a court order disclosing this information. But the actions of the Residence Inn (owned by Briad Group of New Jersey) and operated under agreement and license of Marriott Corporation of Maryland, are not only civil but as the SPCA determined last night, rise to criminal behavior and negligence of treatment and care to an animal. Ms. Black and her employers by NY State Law are required to notify authorities of a missing cat. But some have mentioned that possibly Ms. Black has kept our cat Cotton and without independent law enforcement to investigate this matter and determine what is the truth, and due to the lack of cooperation with Marriott and Briad executives, we are seeking your help in finding OUR COTTON. Officer, please tell me as I served our country as you serve us with distinction right now, why would any reasonable human being do this to a wonderful companion? Have they hurt Our Cotton. Is our Cotton suffering? Did she die and they left her in the street? Why the orchestrated fantasy to lead the many volunteers who are looking and more who wish to find OUR COTTON to an area Cotton was never at? WHY? Marriott talks about how our pets are like family to Marriott and will be treated just like a hotel guest. Search teams were organized in two phases: First, a group of volunteers conducting a physical search of the area in which Cotton was last seen (including placement of lost cat fliers and door-to-door visits to residents homes to enlist their assistance in searching their own property and in allowing a scent dog search on their property at a future time); and, second, a professional tracking dog team (traveling from a considerable distance). We had to postpone the physical and dog searches because there was no confidence in the location the Residence Inn reported as Ms. Blacks residence, where she had taken - and lost - Cotton. White Pages and Intelius searches show her address as 4 Petersburg Court in Coram. The closest location we were provided to her home by the Residence Inn was the intersection of Pamlico Avenue and Wildwood Road in Ronkonkoma, with no designation of which street or house number. Obviously, Ms. Black cannot live in both of these locations. A great deal of time and work was put into setting these searches up, not to mention the unnecessary prolonging of the period of time that our Cotton has stayed lost and been exposed to many potential dangers. Numerous pleas for help were made to executives at the Marriott and the Residence Inn in Islip, hoping to obtain further clarification, to no avail. I appreciate all your responses and I know how busy you were when I landed at JFK. Since I have returned to Israel after looking for Cotton at Pamlico and Wildwood in Ronkonkoma, NY, this may have been an action to steer me away from Coram NY. And if this was done with the intent to harm our Cotton, this is despicable and I know of no other company in the United States that would treat a middle class family with such disrespect as these companies have treated us and our family companion Cotton. I have hundreds of emails and calls from people throughout long island voicing their support and asking how they can help. One man who works for IBM, offered his technical service to begin a boycott application with Marriott, Residence Inns, and Briad Group, (Hotels, TGIFridays, other companies in the eastern seaboard). Another animal rights organization wishes to place similar language on their website until Marriott cooperates with the search of Cotton. I know this is shocking to all of us. My dad who has been staying at Marriott for more than 50 years, was to stay at a Marriott Hotel in San Francisco. He cancelled his stay and switched to IHG group (Hilton). I have written to IHG to seek their possible assistance in searching for Cotton as Marriott informed me in writing that they have no more time and resources to use for Cotton and that unless I release them from liability for their behavior, they will not tell us the truthful address of where Cotton was being safely kept Maybe Kerri dropped our Cotton on the street where David DeCicco told me to go look for Cotton, Pamlico and Wildwood. David said he personally was at this location. If this is true why the charade if they knew Cotton was never in this area. Did Cotton get hurt in their presence and they got nervous about it? This might explain the lies and why it took Marriott 8 days to tell us our family member was lost by their manager. And even after they told us, they continued to do absolutely nothing until I contacted Edward Ryan, VP and General Counsel for Marriott. I am attaching my demand letter to Bill Marriott and to Brad H. which they have not responded to. Lucille Roussin is assisting TEAM COTTON and is an attorney in New York. 212-888-0468 Jeffrey E. Johnson (US and Israeli Citizen) (Vet of USAF) 298 Had Nes Golan Israel 12950 972-58-779-9688
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 11:19:03 +0000
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