Family of Chicago Black Woman Found Dead in Hotel Freezer Reaches Settlement

Earlier this week, the family of Kenneka Jenkins—the Chicago woman who froze to death in a hotel freezer—has agreed to a $10 million legal settlement from Crowne Plaza Chicago O’Hare Hotel. In 2017, Kenneka Jenkins was found deceased inside a walk-in freezer at the Rosemont-based hotel, and the family filed a lawsuit with some serious questions about why the hotel took so long to find Jenkins

According to court records that were made public, the mother of Kenneka Jenkins—Tereasa Martin—will receive nearly $3.7 million. Other relatives of Jenkins will receive $1.5 million and $1.2 million. An additional $3.5 million will go to lawyer fees. Around $6,000 will be allocated to cover Jenkins’ funeral.

Jenkins was discovered on Sept. 10 after she went to the hotel on Sept. 8 for a private party held in one of the rooms. However, many were worried that foul play was involved and that police had botched the case.

A month after Jenkins’ death, Rosemont police released a timeline of her final hours and more evidence, which included audio recordings and pictures of Jenkins’ body in the compartment where she was found.

Ultimately, the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office ruled Jenkins’ death an accident. Medical authorities stated that she died from hypothermia after being in the cold.

In addition, toxicology tests revealed that alcohol and topiramate (epilepsy/migraine medication) was in Jenkins’ system, which played a role in her death, the medical examiner’s office concluded.

After her passing, Jenkins’ mother Tereasa Martin filed a lawsuit against the hotel’s parent company, restaurant and security firm seeking $50 million in damages. In the suit, Martin asserted that staff were negligent because they failed to secure the walk-in freezer.

Martin also claimed that they also failed to do a proper search when Jenkins came up missing. The suit also said that staff didn’t properly monitor security cameras that would have showed them where Jenkins was—and if they did her death could have been prevented.