Hyatt Regency Miami Settles After Exposing Innocent Children To Inappropriate Sexualized Shows
~ This is the third settlement this year enforcing Florida law and protecting minors from future exposure to lewd and lascivious content ~
November 29, 2023
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Today, the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation (DBPR) announced that Hyatt Regency in Miami, which allowed children to observe the lewd and lascivious show, “A Drag Queen Christmas,” agreed to settle the case before going to court.
“Under the leadership of Governor DeSantis, when licensees break the law, they are held accountable,” said DBPR Secretary Melanie S. Griffin. “DBPR takes the safety and wellbeing of Floridians seriously; I thank our hardworking officers for thoroughly investigating these violations of Florida law and protecting minors at our DBPR-licensed establishments from this harm in the future.”
After reviewing the evidence of the Hyatt Regency allowing minors to attend age-inappropriate entertainment shows of a sexual nature, DBPR filed an administrative complaint charging the Hyatt Regency with multiple criminal violations.
The Hyatt Regency has agreed to:
- Pay an administrative fine of $5,000 to the Department of Business and Professional Regulation, Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (ABT) within 30 days;
- Not permit patrons under 18 to any performance conducted in the James L. Knight Center, or any successor performance center under the License, that contains, depicts or simulates any activities described by section 847.001(23), Florida Statues; and
- Abstain from selling or serving food or beverages for any performance in the James L. Knight Center, or any successor performance center under the License, that contains, depicts, or simulates any activities described by section 847.001(23), Florida Statutes, if one or more patrons under the age of 18 are admitted to said performance.
DBPR is the state agency charged with regulating alcoholic beverage licensees, which includes the Hyatt Regency. DBPR became aware of this activity in December 2022, after a video documenting the alleged illegal activity was widely circulated on the internet, eliciting public outrage. ABT law enforcement officers executed an investigation further documenting inappropriate and exploitative behavior by provocative adults in front of children. These investigations resulted in an administrative complaint against the Hyatt Regency, which can be found in the settlement here.
In addition, on August 7, 2023, the Orlando Philharmonic Plaza Foundation, Inc. (Foundation) also settled with DBPR regarding the age-inappropriate sexualized entertainment, “A Drag Queen Christmas.” The Foundation agreed to a $5,000 fine and to not permit patrons under 18 to any performance which contains, depicts or simulates any activities violating section 847.001(23), Florida Statutes. For more information, read the settlement here.
On September 12, 2023, R House, Inc. (R House) in Miami also agreed to settle a case before going to court. As a result of repeatedly putting children in inappropriate situations, R House agreed to pay an administrative fine of $10,000; not knowingly permit patrons under 18 on premises during any performance which contains, depicts or simulates any activities violating section 847.001(23), and advertise the events as 18 and older only; and check IDs of those appearing to be age 25 or younger. Find the R-House settlement agreement here.
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The Department of Business and Professional Regulation licenses and regulates more than 1.7 million businesses and professionals in the State of Florida across more than 30 fields of industry. The Department’s mission is to license efficiently and regulate fairly. For more information, visit MyFloridaLicense.com.
