Statement of Facts:

Mary Nelson was a guest at the Shady rest Hotel on September 3, 1979. She retired about midnight. Her room was equipped with an inerior chain lock which she forgot to hook, although the door was otherwise locked. Marvin Ellis, the maintenance man, entered the room about 2 a.m., using his passkey, and brutally assaulted and raped Miss Nelson, for which crime he is now serving a life sentence in the penitentiary. Miss Nelson now has sued the Shady Rest Hotel alleging that they were negligent in hiring Ellisand providing him with a pass key to all the rooms. The Hotel defends on the grounds that they did not know about Esllis' background, that the rape was beyond their control, and that Miss Nelson was contributorily negligent, which bars any recovery of damages, because she did not use the chain lock which the hotel had provided for her safety.

The evidence shows that the hotel manager did not do any background check on Ellis when he was hired two months previously. If he had, he would have found that Ellis had four felony convictions, two urglaries, and two rapes. The evidence also shows Ellis was given a pass key and was frequently at the Shady Rest at odd hours to perform various maintenance tasks. The evidencefurther shows that the chain lock is intended to protect the occupant from unauthorized entry into the room, and that there are two signs, one on the door and one on the bathroom mirror, advising the guest to always use the chain lock.