Joe Mollicone, III Sued in Federal Court Over Injury at Airbnb Rental

Joe Mollicone, III Sued in Federal Court Over Injury at Airbnb Rental

Joseph Mollicone, III, and Airbnb are being sued in federal court in Providence by a New York Doctor and her husband.

Mollicone, III is the son of the notorious banker Joe Mollicone, Jr. — the man who is considered the person primarily responsible for the collapse of the credit union system in 1990 in Rhode Island.

He was convicted on 26 counts, including embezzlement, bank fraud, and conspiring to create false bank documents.

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Mollicone, Jr., now 81-years-old, owes the state approximately $12 million in restitution.

According to FBI documents, his namesake grandfather was a close associate of New England crime boss Raymond Patriarca. GoLocal chronicled his ties in a series of reports in The Patriarca Papers. The grandfather was known as "Puppy Dog." He died in 1986.

 

Federal Lawsuit for Younger Mollicone and Travel Company

Mollicone, III and Airbnb are named in the lawsuit filed on Wednesday that claims they were negligent in maintaining the property that they rented.

Lawyers for Doctor Tamsin and Thomas Pope claim that the suit “relates to a fall injury which occurred on September 5, 2021, upon the premises located at 22 Riverside Drive, South Kingstown. At all times relevant hereto, Defendant Joseph Mollicone, III was the owner of real property…and was renting the Premises to the Plaintiffs through Defendants AIRBNB, Inc. and AIRBNB PAYMENTS, INC.”

“Tamsin Pope, DC and her husband, Thomas Pope, had traveled to Rhode Island from their home state of New York. On September 5, 2021, Dr. Pope entered the bathroom shower stall, which doubles as a shower and a tub. The tub is constructed of a typical acrylic or ceramic-like material which becomes very slippery when covered with water. The shower stall lacked any slip resistant shower mat or other safety measures necessary to avoid slipping on the slick tub basin surface. The shower stall also lacked any safety measures necessary to avoid losing one’s balance, such as handrails or grab bars. As Dr. Pope was showering, suddenly and without warning the water temperature rose quickly to the point it began to scald her skin. In an effort to avoid serious burn injury, Dr. Pope attempted to exit the shower. In doing so, she was caused to slip on the slick basin floor and fell backwards over the side of the tub. As she fell, her torso pivoted outside of the tub while her legs were still inside causing her body to sustain a substantial impact upon the side of the tub basin and causing her head to strike the edge of the vanity and then the floor. This fall incident resulted in severe and permanent injuries to Dr. Pope,” claims the suit.

The lawsuit claims the home did not have basic protective elements that a shower should have installed.

“The Defendant, Joseph Mollicone, III, his agents, servants, and or employees did negligently and carelessly breach all of the aforesaid duties by allowing the shower temperature controls to remain in a defective condition and by failing to outfit the shower with reasonable safeguards including but not limited to, a slip resistant mat and/or surface on the shower tub basin, handrails, and/or grab bars," according to the suit. 

As a result, the lawsuit claims Dr. Pope was severely injured, and that the incident caused significant financial loss to the couple.

“As a direct and proximate result of said negligence, the Plaintiff, Dr. Pope, was caused to slip and fall and sustained severe, permanent, personal injuries, including but not limited to, a scalp laceration, an acute wedge fracture of T12 with retropulsion of the posterior end plate producing mass effect on the thecal sac, a nondisplaced fracture through the T11 spinous process, and spinal stenosis. These injuries resulted in surgical intervention including posterior spinal instrumentation; posterior spinal arthrodesis at T10-11, T1-12, T12-L1 and L1-L2; and open treatment of T12 and L1 vertebral body fractures and reduction. These injuries incapacitated Dr. Pope and have prevented her from carrying on her usual activities; she suffered, presently suffers, and in the future will suffer great pain of body and mind; she had suffered permanent scarring; she incurred, is continuing to incur and will in the future incur great expenses for medical and hospital care attention; she has suffered a loss of homemaker services; she has sustained lost wages and in the future will sustain a loss of earnings; and was otherwise injured and damaged,” claims the Pope’s lawsuit.

The plaintiffs are being represented by Attorney Tom Moran of Marasco & Nesselbush.

“As short-term rentals become more and more popular with homeowners, especially in our coastal communities, homeowners must ensure they are taking the same precautions and providing the same safety measures that are required by the hospitality industry and found in resorts and hotels," Moran said in a statement to GoLocal. 

Mollicone, III said he declined to comment.

The case has been assigned to federal court Judge Will Smith.

Article first published 9/5/2024 7:48 AM

Updated 9/5/24 11:36 AM