On September 2, Deborah Jones signed a Storage Rental Agreement with Econo-Self Storage owned by Ernie Hanna. Jones needed to store her personal belongings and furniture because of the flooding of her apartment. The self-storage agreement was written as a lease and designated the parties as landlord and tenant. The warehouse space leased by Jones was 10 feet by 10 feet, on a monthly term of $45.
The agreement provided in part: "All property kept, stored, or maintained within the premises by Tenant shall be at Tenant's sole risk." On May 2, Jones learned that the lock to her storage unit had been cut and virtually all of her possessions were stolen. The circumstances of the theft were not known. The storage units, 180 in all, were protected by a 6-foot fence and a locked gate. The tenants placed their own locks on the units. No security dogs or watchmen were provided. Access could be made to the units between 6 a.m. and 9 p.m. daily. No inventory was made of the goods by the facility owner, and the goods were never placed in his hands and he did not know what was stored. Jones brought suit to recover damages for the loss of her property. Was Econo-Self Storage the bailee of Jones's goods?