The family of a Chicago woman who froze to death after she was locked in a hotel freezer has agreed to a US$10 million (NZ$16 million) legal settlement.
Kenneka Jenkins' mother, Tereasa Martin, will receive about US$3.7 million (NZ$5.9 million), according to court records made public overnight, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Other family members will receive US$1.2 million (NZ$1.9 million) and US$1.5 million (NZ$2.4 million).
Some of the settlement will cover attorney fees and the cost of Jenkins' funeral.
Jenkins was found dead in the walk-in freezer at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in suburban Rosemont in September 2017, a day after she attended a party there.
The Cook County medical examiner's office determined that she died of hypothermia and that her death was accidental.
Alcohol intoxication and the use of a drug for treating epilepsy and migraines were "significant contributing factors" in her death, the office said. Surveillance videos released by police showed Jenkins wandering alone through a kitchen area near the freezer on the day she disappeared.
Martin filed a lawsuit in December 2018 alleging that the hotel, a security company and a restaurant at the hotel that rented the freezer were negligent because they didn't secure the freezer or conduct a proper search following Jenkins' disappearance.
Jenkins' body wasn't discovered for more than 21 hours after she was believed to have entered the freezer. Surveillance footage wasn't reviewed until police arrived at the hotel, according to the lawsuit.
Had the hotel properly monitored the security cameras, Jenkins would still be alive, the lawsuit argued.
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