Osoyoos motel fined $5,000 for evicting guest who left a roach in an ashtray

An Osoyoos motel that kicked a guest out after finding a roach, or the butt of a joint, in an ashtray outside her room had been ordered to pay $5,000 by the BC Human Rights Tribunal.

According to a March 19, BC Human Rights Tribunal decision, Vicky Arvanitis was staying at the Sun Beach Motel during the August long weekend of 2020, when she left the butt of a cannabis cigarette in the ashtray.

The decision says Arvanitis is disabled and uses medicinal marijuana to treat her symptoms.

The motel had strict rules around cannabis.

“Marijana (sic) is not allowed in the rooms, smoking or otherwise. Please leave your marijuana in your vehicle. There is a designated area which we will gladly point out. Anyone smoking marijuana in the rooms or common area may be asked to leave. There will be no refunds,” the motel’s policy reads.

After a night at the motel, Arvanitis took her dog to a nearby park and smoked a joint while she was there.

As it was hot and dry, and she was concerned about wildfires, she took the roach back to the motel and placed it in the ashtray outside her room.

Sometime later that afternoon the motel manager, Samaria Goertzen, noticed the end of a marijuana cigarette in the ashtray outside Arvanitis’ room.

A confrontation took place and Goertzen told Arvanitis “we don’t want people like you at our motel.”

The RCMP were called and Arvanitis was evicted. The motel gave her a refund.

“Ms. Arvanitis was ‘highly agitated and hostile but left without any physical altercation,’” the police report states.

As it was a long weekend, all the other motels were full, so she drove back to her home in North Vancouver.

She later filed a BC Human Rights complaint arguing the motel discriminated against her because of her disability, and the case went to a three-day hearing.

The motel denied discrimination, and argued Arvanitis smoked cannabis in her room, contrary to its rules.

However, the Tribunal dismissed the argument, finding that Arvanitis didn’t smoke in the room and accepted her testimony that she’d smoked the joint in the park and brought the butt back.

“Arvanitis’ use of cannabis is connected to her disability… (and) her use of cannabis for a disability-related purpose was a factor in the eviction,” the Tribunal ruled. “The motel evicted Ms. Arvanitis at least in part based on their policy governing cannabis possession and use. This adversely impacted Ms. Arvanitis in connection with her disabilities.”

The motel argued it had a reasonable justification that marijuana could not be stored or smoked on the premises to prevent the impact of smoke damage and odour to guest rooms and common areas. 

The Tribunal said that the no smoking rule was fair, but that the motel hadn’t explained the rule prohibiting the possession of medicinally prescribed cannabis products in motel rooms.

“The Motel has not justified the adverse impact experienced by Ms. Arvanitis,” the Tribunal said, finding that the motel’s conduct was not justified.

Arvanitis argued the motel should pay her $20,000 in compensation, the motel said $1,500 was more reasonable.

“Ms. Arvanitis is a person living with disabilities including chronic pain, which she treats with cannabis. This form of treatment is stigmatized, and I find the Motel’s conduct was informed by this stigma,” the Tribunal ruled.

Ultimately, the Tribunal ordered the motel to pay Arvanitis $5,000, for her injury to dignity, feelings and self-respect.

“While I accept that this was a humiliating experience for Ms. Arvanitis and the drive home was stressful given the circumstance and her disabilities, it was also a single occurrence and isolated from her daily life,” the Tribunal ruled.