Hotel Owner Calls Guest 'Dumb Democrat,' Kicks Her Family Out in Video

A family trip to Michigan ended in disaster when a hotel bathroom flooded and the guests were kicked out in the middle of the night after the owner blamed one of them for the damage—calling her a "piece of s***" and a "dumb Democrat."

A video of the incident posted on Facebook shows an angry man behind the front desk arguing with a woman as she tries to explain that the bathroom in her room is flooding, only to be told that she is responsible for the problem.

Jennifer Biela uploaded the footage about her stay at the Crown Choice Inn & Suites in Mackinaw City, Michigan, on May 20, saying the incident had taken place over spring break but she had waited until she felt safe to share the story.

Biela said she and her friend Jonesta Kimble had arrived with their five children for a two-night stay at the hotel when she discovered that her toilet had started overflowing and the bathroom was flooding.

"Around 11, my kids and I went to bed. Shortly after my son heard water and I discovered the toilet was overflowing and flooding the bathroom," Biela told Newsweek.

At this point, Biela said she ran downstairs to ask for help.

"I explained to the front desk the situation," Biela told Newsweek. "He asked me if I shut the valve off to the toilet. I said 'No, I am coming to you for help, the bathroom is literally flooding.' He then stated because I refused to shut the valve off, he was calling the police, pressing charges against me for malicious destruction of property and told me to get my stuff and get out."

In the video, Biela is heard telling the man: "I was laying in bed with my children and your bathroom started flooding."

The man interrupts her to say: "You rented the room, it's your bathroom now … you're responsible for that room."

"No, I'm not," Biela responds as the man berates her, calling her an "idiot" and a "dumb Democrat" before asking her to pack her bags.

"You stop being an idiot and start thinking with your mind, OK? Stop being a Democrat—a dumb Democrat—and go to your room, pack your stuff and leave," he tells the audibly distressed woman.

"You're causing damages and you're not going to pay for it … that's a stupid answer. You're an idiot," the man continues in another clip posted on Facebook. "When you get the police report you'll come to your senses."

Biela told Newsweek there had been no references to politics in her previous interactions with the main.

In the video, when Biela asks the man if he owns the hotel, he responds: "Yeah, it's family owned. Get your stuff and get out."

He goes on: "Leave. It's better for you, dumbass. Leave. You're responsible, pieces of s***."

Biela then tells him that she will not be paying for the room.

"OK, you're all set, then leave. If you think I'm not going to charge you then leave. I'm charging you," the man responds.

"For what?" she asks.

"For rent and for damages, if there are any damages," he replies. "I asked you to shut the water, you refused."

When Biela tries to protest that she did not refuse but rather did not know how to do it and had asked for help, the man tells her: "I also told you that, you idiot."

In her Facebook post, Biela said she was "in such shock" but "managed to start recording this about halfway through the conversation."

She also shared a photo of a police report from Mackinaw City Police Department, alleging damage to property.

After the man threatened to call the police to charge her with malicious destruction of property, Biela said she and her friend packed up their bags and the five children. They left the hotel after midnight.

"There was only one other hotel in Mackinaw that was open and not owned by this family. We tried but they were full," she said. "So at 2:30 in the morning we made it to Gaylord and went home the next day."

Biela said the encounter had left her "absolutely distraught." "To be honest I was terrified, it was just him and I in the lobby. When he made the comment to 'leave, it's better for you' it felt like a threat and I was scared what might happen," she told Newsweek.

She also pointed out that the prosecutors' office had dismissed the charges against her as "no malicious intent/willfulness/conduct identified."

After returning home, she discovered numerous other bad reviews of the hotel, as well as complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau.

"There are so many beautiful places in Michigan and unfortunately this is one that's not worth your time or money," she wrote on Facebook.

According to online records, the owner of the hotel is Enzo Lieghio. Enzo and his brother Joe Lieghio own a number of hotels in the area.

Biela's friend Jonesta Kimble told Newsweek that she doubts it was the first time the man had been rude to guests. "Clearly not his first offense if you have read the comments and went through the reviews," she said.

Biela added: "This event was not only traumatic for myself and my friend but also for our children. My daughter refers to him as 'the man who bullied my mom.'"

Since Biela shared her experience, the video has gone viral with more than 213,000 views and thousands of shares on Twitter. Many people have visited the hotel's pages on TripAdvisor and Yelp to leave negative reviews. Both websites have now suspended reviews.

"This place is nasty and the front desk is rude. Avoid this place. DO NOT stay here," one person wrote on Yelp. "This guy is rude and cheating people out of money for staying at this dump."

"Never seen an owner/operator so rude to customers in a long time. This is no way to run a business," another wrote. "I hope you are not in a situation where you have to stay here and put up with this man's horrible attitude and disrespectful way of treating people."

"'It's your bathroom' I don't think that's how hotels work," one man posted.

Newsweek has contacted Crown Choice Inn & Suites and Enzo Lieghio and Joe Lieghio for comment.

Update 05/26/21, 11:45a.m ET: This article was updated to add comments from Jennifer Biela and a video of the incident.