A Texas grand jury decided against issuing a criminal indictment against Travis Scott for his role in the crowd crush incident that caused the death of 10 and injuries to hundreds at the Astroworld Festival in 2021. The rapper was on stage during the incident, and has faced scrutiny for failing to take any action during the emergency, as well as hundreds of lawsuits filed against him and others involved with the production.
“In this instance, the grand jury of the 228th District Court of Harris County found that no crime did occur, that no single individual was criminally responsible,” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said at a press conference.
The prosecutor did say that the victims’ families are welcome to file civil suits, of which hundreds have already been filed, targeting both Scott and Live Nation Entertainment and other entities involved with the event.
“We have relief under different types of law. … So I want peace for those families,” Ogg added. “Whether criminal charges, whether civil liability and money damages, whether administrative help brings those families justice, I just hope they achieve some kind of resolution that they can move forward with.”
Scott was the headliner and creator of the festival, which reportedly had 50,000 in attendance that fall day outside of NRG Stadium in Houston. While he performed, fans surged towards the stage, and many were caught in the crush. More than 300 people were treated for injuries while 25 were transported to area hospitals.
“[Scott] never encouraged people to do anything that resulted in other people being hurt,” says Scott’s lawyer Kent Schaffer, adding that the decision is “a great relief.”
Schaffer stressed that while he and his client were sympathetic to those who were injured or lost loved ones in the tragedy, the situation was one outside of Scott’s control.
“Travis is not responsible,” Schaffer said. “Bringing criminal charges against him will not ease their pain.”
Scott did not perform for several months following the tragedy, but began taking the stage again in 2022 once the initial shock of Astroworld had passed. His current performing schedule includes multiple appearances at festivals in Europe, and he was just added to the September lineup of the iHeartRadio Festival in Las Vegas on Thursday and is on the bill for Rolling Loud Miami.
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