Looking into the shooter's background, we've been digging into court records all morning, and we found something interesting in Clark County District Court. Stephen Paddock sued the Cosmopolitan for a slip and fall where he claimed to have been injured on Oct. 30, 2011 when he was a guest at the hotel.
According to court records, Paddock claimed that as he walked from a sundry shop off of a hotel corridor, he took 15 or 20 steps and then apparently fell in some liquid that had been spilled on the floor by some unknown source.
Court records show Paddock was en route to the high limit gambling area in the hotel when he fell. As a result of the fall, he allegedly tore his hamstring and sprained his right hand and wrist. He also claimed his blood pressure was elevated due to the trauma. And that he racked up more than $32,000 dollars in medical bills following the accident.
Video shows Vegas shooting suspect slipping at Cosmopolitan Las Vegas hotel in 2011; he later sued hotel and lost. https://t.co/Iqx1Mq2PsV pic.twitter.com/GeIUSJQCuO
— ABC News (@ABC) October 3, 2017
The case went to arbitration on July 31, 2014. As part of that, the Cosmpolitan showed video of Paddock's fall. The arbitrator said it did appear that Paddock slipped in some substance, but the video showed an employee and about 20 customers walking through exact same area immediately before he fell and no one appeared to notice anything.
Paddock testified "there is no way you are going to see liquid on the floor."
The arbitrator ruled against Paddock and in favor of the Cosmopolitan.
Sources in the legal community familiar with this case say Paddock was a known gambler who frequented many Las Vegas properties.
We're learning that over the last few days, he's rumored to have lost a lot of money playing video poker. No way to tell if that contributed to his motive for the shooting, but it could be a factor in his mindset.
