JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – A military veteran said his recent visit to Jacksonville Beach ended with a trip to the hospital after he stepped on a needle from a used syringe under his hotel bed.
James Ryals, who was visiting from Colorado, said it happened shortly after he checked into his hotel room Monday night at the Hampton Inn in Jacksonville Beach.
"My foot went under the edge of the bed skirt and I felt something prick my toe," James Ryals said.
He said he found a second syringe, which was empty, under the bed, but he said the one he stepped on was not.
"The one that was in my foot had about half of a “CC” of some kind of substance," Ryals said. "It was a turquoise-ish color."
So what was supposed to be a vacation for Ryals' family instead turned into a visit to the emergency room and a pile of medical bills.
"The emergency room visit itself was a little over $5000 and then the two prescriptions, which still have not been filled, are to prevent AIDS and one of them is $2000 and one is almost $2,500," he said.
He said the doctor’s biggest concern was diseases like AIDS, HIV and Hepatitis.
"I have a series of blood tests that will span over the next year that I need to get done just to verify whether or not I contracted anything," Ryals said.
The general manager at the Hampton Inn eventually led News4Jax off the property, but he doesn’t believe Ryals’ story and said the hotel’s legal team is now involved.
Attorney John Phillips, who represents Ryals, said the hotel should be responsible for more than just covering his client's medical bills.
"I mean he spent a day of his vacation in Florida in a hospital and he spent three more days worrying about what possibly could be incubating in his body," Phillips said. "That’s just horrible."
Ryals said he’s been a loyal Hilton member for years, but that may end depending on how this situation is handled by the hotel company.
The police report said investigators also collected a bag with white powder found outside the hotel room. It’s unclear if the bag is related to the syringes.