La Quinta Inn & Amarillo SWAT: A Special Kind Of Relationship

For whatever reason, it seems like we hear about quite a few hostage and standoff situations taking place in Amarillo. Some are pretty easy to get through, others have a tendency to drag out.

We see a myriad of places these situations take place too. Houses, apartments, and hotels seem to be popular.

There seems to be one hotel chain in Amarillo that is more popular than others for hostage and standoff situations though. That hotel chain? La Quinta Inn.

Now, I'm not saying it's anything La Quinta is doing wrong. I mean they aren't out there advertising, "the place to hold your standoff!". I mean that would just be a bad look, but in Amarillo, it does seem to be the preferred spot for these situations.

Yesterday, the Amarillo SWAT team was deployed to the La Quinta Inn on E. I-40 as police were attempting to serve a parole warrant on Anthony Fitzgerald Bowman. Eventually, Bowman would come out of the room after realizing he had no way out.

Well of course not, you were in a hotel room with only one way out...the front of the room. Front door or window, but they were waiting.

Let's rewind to October 2022 when the La Quinta Inn on Coulter was the scene of a hostage situation with Amarillo SWAT. Tony Len Nichols was holed up in a room with a woman he had kidnapped and was threatening to shoot at police.

Two times in seven months. I'd say La Quinta has got to be tired of this happening to them. Basically people have two options with La Quinta in Amarillo. One, don't book a room there, which obviously is NOT what the hotel chain is going for. Two? Book a room, set up a video camera and catch a SWAT situation unfold.

I feel bad for La Quinta Inn at this point, because their reputation within the city is taking quite a hit with all these SWAT situations. I'd add them to the cursed buildings here in Amarillo, but maybe it's time to start a cursed businesses thread.