American expat avoids jail for negative review - reaches settlement with Koh Chang hotel

[phetchy]

Happy days!  So nobody loses face, and everyone's happy (particularly the lawyers).

[mark131v]

On 10/10/2020 at 8:43 AM, aroiaroi said:

That's hilarious. The news report have painted the hotels management team as absolute fools.

The customer has issued an apology

 

 

 

And this is all that really matters and something the 'hang em high's' just cannot get their thick skulls around!!

 

Have read loads of drivel about this but for many of the most vocal they like the hotel management just cannot see the big picture

 

Most would agree Barnes was a complete <deleted> but again it's beside the point, the petty vindictive stance taken by the Thai's involved have damaged their industry in general and the hotel specifically

 

That excerpt is from the NY Times not any of the government sponsored propaganda sites, educate yourself on how the real world views this or keep the rose tinted specks on, up to you for the Thai'r than Thai lot...

 

On 10/10/2020 at 8:43 AM, aroiaroi said:

in a statement filled with stilted official language reminiscent of a forced confession.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/09/world/asia/thailand-review-american-apology.html

[aroiaroi]

Tourism contributes about 15% to the GDP.

It appears that the hotel and local Ko Chang police department have made a unilateral, feudal decision, without considering the negative impact to the tourism industry (and bizarrely, to the hotel itself), and without influence by presumably more level headed decision makers higher up the food chain (stepping in to wake them up from whatever egotistical or childish fit came over them).

The hotel must be very well connected to the Ko Chang police department. Whatever credits they have earned over the years are probably now exhausted by this stunt.

So the hotels reputation is in tatters, it's previous good and influencial relationship with the local police department is probably now strained, there will be fewer customers as a result of this fiasco, and it's going to have a negative impact on Thailands tourism industry. On the other hand, the customer has 2 days in jail and has to write some forced confessional.

The hotel should close and they should replace it with some type of historical local museum, with wax statues etc. This level of stupidity should be enshrined and on show as a cautionary tale for all.

 

 

 

[mark131v]

The hotel owners and the local plod on the island are big fish in a small pond who are not used to having their authority challenged, used to lots of waiing and doing what they please

 

The hotels arrogance in the way this was dealt with is epic as is the Thai'r than Thai element on TV's complete inability to see the big picture then again most seem to be a bit on the 'I am alright jack' side of things, not really big on consequences for the poor 

 

I reckon it wouldn't take long for some of hang em high's to go full on Lord of the Flies with their fellow fallangs' but most seem to be old and insecure and quite happy to turn a blind eye to Thailand's epic failings, anyhoo wonder if they realise they're just another alien, doesn't matter how much ass is kissed...

Edited October 12, 2020 by mark131v
there, their, they're

[Prince77]

As far as I know, this guy was employed as a teacher although his criminal past would not have allowed him to be in Thailand in addition to the rumor that his documents were not in order - does anybody have knowledge if he is / will be deported on this ground?

[2009]

Ah, the old "shoot myself in the foot cos I got small Bobby syndrome"

[aroiaroi]

7 hours ago, Prince77 said:

As far as I know, this guy was employed as a teacher although his criminal past would not have allowed him to be in Thailand in addition to the rumor that his documents were not in order - does anybody have knowledge if he is / will be deported on this ground?

It will be easier for immigration to review/reject any visa extensions at renewal time.

It's hard to imagine them going to all the effort of deporting him - can you imagine the next wave of embarrasing news headlines ? "English teacher posts 1 star review, jailed for 2 nights and then deported after forced confessional".

Nevertheless, his teaching career probably has been given quite a boost. He has taught the hotel quite a lesson. And he obviously has a special talent for schooling children (and their derivatives, man-childs).

[sucit]

First thing many do when booking a hotel is do a quick google search. 

 

In this case "hotel arrests foreigner...". 

 

Comical decision by management. 

[SePl]

Hey people, don't forger to post your reviews, now that the protecting trend has gone...

 

[SePl]

On 10/13/2020 at 11:15 AM, sucit said:

First thing many do when booking a hotel is do a quick google search. 

 

In this case "hotel arrests foreigner...". 

 

Comical decision by management. 

 

Fortunately their business is dead now !

 

[rott]

On 10/11/2020 at 8:57 AM, stretch5163 said:

Where you say if the comment os genuine its acceptable .. Lets face it this is Thailand and now the floodgates are open for anyone with a bad comment on trip advisor or social media to cry Defamation, and dont tell me it wont happen lol....Half of the good reports are written by the owners on various accounts. It makes a mockery of freedom of speach to be honest.

It is no good crying defamation, you need to convince the police to prosecute. 

[rott]

I supported the hotel all along until the "apology". It defies belief. Do they really think it will do anything but make them look completely stupid.?

[ChipButty]

I think if he has lost his job and get deported I think the hotel can stick that apology where monkeys shove nuts if they think the last lots of reviews were bad wait until the next lot

[OumarhindaOunsingha]

On 10/9/2020 at 4:27 AM, spidermike007 said:

The regime has once again decided to protect the bigger guy, over the smaller guy. This will not go over well, internationally. Everyone will see right through this badly engineered PR stunt. When faced with jail, and who knows what else, many of us would prefer to "apologize". 

Yes, to me, it also could sound like oppression. But we don't really know what happened. But the outcome sounds...-well, I am not sure I trust it.

[SePl]

On 10/25/2020 at 3:28 PM, rott said:

I supported the hotel all along until the "apology". It defies belief. Do they really think it will do anything but make them look completely stupid.?

 

What else do you think they are ? who is idiot enough to sue a customer whatever he did ?

I keep posting against them and will still do it the next years. They are dead, I want them dead.

 

[rott]

I have posted the appropriate Thai laws several times, he was approached and requested to cease but refused to even speak to them. 

The response was heavy handed and they shot themselves in the foot. 

 

What is the protecting trend. 

 

They did not sue him, it was criminal law not civil law. 

[charliebadenhop]

SePI, 

You want the hotel dead?

Why exactly?

 

 

[Rimmer]

Some baiting and bickering posts have been removed

[RobU]

 

On 10/10/2020 at 3:23 AM, rkidlad said:

You’ll definitely go to this hotel? 
 

But what if you don’t have a good experience? Will you put a positive spin on it and look at it as another opportunity to take it up the wrongun?

I most certainly will not complain about being charged corkage which is a standard practice in all British hotels restaurants and bars, especially if the corkage charged is waived as happened with this fool. The man is a typical bully who feels entitled to have anything he wants for free,  if he had been in his room and the attempt was made to charge him then I would be sympathetic however he chose to sit in the hotel lobby (with drinks service and bar) and drink from a bottle he bought elsewhere, that would attract a corkage charge in any establishment in the UK. The amount charged is entirely up to the establishment and many hotels and bars charge very high corkage (sometimes equal to the cost of the bottle or more) in order to discourage such practices.

Edited October 27, 2020 by RobU

[RobU]

On 10/10/2020 at 2:21 PM, Myran said:

Your replies regarding this topic seem to be filled with, "We don't know this, we don't know that". The reality is that you don't know these things, for the simple reason you haven't bothered to read up on the subject. I suggest you read the Americans own account of what happened before making further contributions: https://twitter.com/RichardBarrow/status/1309838923175133185

 

I don't think i would trust the word of a habitual drunk who threatens people with a gun in his own country and has an arrest warrant out for him for shooting from a moving vehicle check the link below which seems to have been carefully ignored by the NY Times in their appraisal of the situation

https://jacksoncountyprosecutor.com/DocumentCenter/View/726/WBarnes_Redacted?bidId=

 

[pixelaoffy]

Of course it's 'absolutely insane ' someone could have gone to jail in Thailand for this . But Thailand is insane .. welcome 

[Eloquent pilgrim]

2 hours ago, rkidlad said:

Not whataboutism. Judging cases based off their merits and then comparing how a person can be jailed for bad reviews online while others don't spend a single second in jail for killing someone. It's called perspective. It's particularly important when judging people for their sins. 

 

This person didn't kill anyone. They wrote bad reviews online. 

 

Oh, and I never said he went to prison. I said he went to JAIL. Learn to read comments properly before you make assumptions to fit your narrative. 

 

 

Thank you kindly for the advice about reading comments; however, this is your comment that I was replying to:

 

“But should people be sent to prison for this?

 

I mean, the Red Bull Rat killed a police officer while drunk and didn't even spend a day in jail, let alone prison” 

 

Spot the use of the word ‘prison’ there ?

 

It's a bit tricky, I admit, because you only used it twice ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[rkidlad]

Just now, Eloquent pilgrim said:

Thank you kindly for the advice about reading comments; however, this is your comment that I was replying to:

 

“But should people be sent to prison for this?

 

I mean, the Red Bull Rat killed a police officer while drunk and didn't even spend a day in jail, let alone prison” 

 

Spot the use of the word ‘prison’ there ?

 

It's a bit tricky, I admit, because you only used it twice ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Yes, the American was facing 'prison' for writing bad reviews online. I asked, "should people be sent to prison for this?". It was in reference to the potential punishment for this crime. 

 

Where did I state he was sent to prison? I stated very clearly he was in JAIL. Never once did I state he is, or ever was, in prison.

 

Next......

[RobU]

4 hours ago, rkidlad said:

Yes, the American was facing 'prison' for writing bad reviews online. I asked, "should people be sent to prison for this?". It was in reference to the potential punishment for this crime. 

 

Where did I state he was sent to prison? I stated very clearly he was in JAIL. Never once did I state he is, or ever was, in prison.

 

Next......

Definitions

prison

/ˈprɪz(ə)n/

noun

1.    a building in which people are legally held as a punishment for a crime they have committed or while awaiting trial.

jail

/dʒeɪl/

noun

1.    a place for the confinement of people accused or convicted of a crime.

 

 

The definition of both words is the same both are used for detention of convicted Criminals, Both are used for detention of persons accused of a crime Jail and Prison are synonyms i.e. different words with the exactly the same meaning

[rkidlad]

5 minutes ago, RobU said:

Definitions

prison

/ˈprɪz(ə)n/

noun

1.    a building in which people are legally held as a punishment for a crime they have committed or while awaiting trial.

jail

/dʒeɪl/

noun

1.    a place for the confinement of people accused or convicted of a crime.

 

 

The definition of both words is the same both are used for detention of convicted Criminals, Both are used for detention of persons accused of a crime Jail and Prison are synonyms i.e. different words with the exactly the same meaning

Webster’s Dictionary: 

 

What to Know

Jail and prison are often used interchangeably as places of confinement. If you want to be specific jail can be used to describe a place for those awaiting trial or held for minor crimes, whereas prison describes a place for convicted criminals of serious crimes.

 

And in the context of my posts, jail was where he was sent for 2 days and prison is where he could have gone had a court felt it necessary. 
 

Do you really wanna keep pulling at this thread?
 

 

[mark131v]

5 minutes ago, rkidlad said:

Webster’s Dictionary: 

 

What to Know

Jail and prison are often used interchangeably as places of confinement. If you want to be specific jail can be used to describe a place for those awaiting trial or held for minor crimes, whereas prison describes a place for convicted criminals of serious crimes.

 

And in the context of my posts, jail was where he was sent for 2 days and prison is where he could have gone had a court felt it necessary. 
 

Do you really wanna keep pulling at this thread?
 

 

 

I wouldn't bother with the pedants mate they are incapable of seeing a big picture therefore they focus on the minutiae

 

It would appear they believe the Thai legal system and police demand respect, imo they demand contempt and the reason for this is demonstrated on a regular basis

 

You and other's have repeatedly pointed out using a sledge hammer to kill a mosquito is overkill and if you want something to be respected it needs to be fair and equally applied

 

The fact they believe a person should spend even a minute in custody/remand/jail/prison for 4 online reviews over a period of weeks is telling

 

I hope they never break a law or upset a local, pathetic really...

[Enki]

On 10/9/2020 at 4:41 AM, rkidlad said:

What could one take away from this? Write a bad review, get arrested and put in jail, and then apologise and say you were lying. It's still the same message; write a bad review and we'll send you to prison. 

 

 

It was not a bad review, it was defamation. Grasp the difference.

 

[rkidlad]

3 hours ago, Enki said:

It was not a bad review, it was defamation. Grasp the difference.

 

But that isn’t how the press has coined it. And that’s all that matters when you’re trying to protect and promote your business. 
 

Grasp the reality. 

[mark131v]

2 hours ago, Enki said:

It was not a bad review, it was defamation. Grasp the difference.

 

 

Nope it was a bad review...

 

Absolutely does not matter who is wrong, if you run a business in hospitality industry (might want to look that up!!) then you are going to have to deal with unhappy punters, par for the course....

 

How you as a business deals with this is really important but I reckon getting your customers jailed for 4, I say again 4!!!! online reviews well I really think that's a <deleted> poor management plan and tbh a bit <deleted>...

[Old Croc]

43 minutes ago, mark131v said:

 

Nope it was a bad review...

 

Absolutely does not matter who is wrong, if you run a business in hospitality industry (might want to look that up!!) then you are going to have to deal with unhappy punters, par for the course....

 

How you as a business deals with this is really important but I reckon getting your customers jailed for 4, I say again 4!!!! online reviews well I really think that's a <deleted> poor management plan and tbh a bit <deleted>...

Nope, it was defamation.

His several posts using different versions of his name contained lies and racism. It was never a review of service nor facilities. It was an attempt to harm the business because his drunken antics were challenged. The man you want to champion is a buffoon who has come under notice in home country for brandishing a gun, Then again that is considered a virtue by many these days.
The hotel, like all others, has had bad reviews previously. This was not that, this was a thug with his nose out of joint. He had ample opportunity to fix the matter before arrest, but declined to do so.