By By JOHN DILMORE JR. Publisher
One of three lawsuits accusing a local hotelier of invasion of privacy over holes found in the walls of some rooms has been deemed ready for trial here in August.
At a status hearing Thursday, attorneys on both sides of the matter told Circuit Judge Joe Brogden that they were prepared to plead their cases in court.
Andy Moye is suing Sarju Patel, who owns the local Days Inn, as well as Days Inn Worldwide, alleging that holes found in the room he and his family occupied on June 23, 2001 constituted an invasion of his privacy.
The Moyes were in Brewton for a family reunion at the time. Andy Moye and his family stayed in room 106 of the hotel, and his parents, Charles and Elsa Moye, stayed in room 206. The morning after they'd checked in, both Moye couples discovered holes in the walls of their rooms, and called Brewton police to the scene.
Police found spots on the walls that had obviously been holes, but which they been filled in with what was later described as a putty-like substance. The holes opened onto utility chases, access corridors between rooms used to maintain plumbing and other hotel equipment.
That there were holes in the walls isn't disputed by either side. What is disputed is how they got there, why they were there, and also how long they had been filled in with putty when police first saw them.
R. Tucker Yance, who represents Andy Moye, as well as two other plaintiffs suing over the holes, claims his own investigation has turned up privacy violations in addition to the alleged peepholes.r June 14.