The first of an expected litany of possible lawsuits against Travis Scott and Live Nation was filed Saturday (November 6) in Harris County Court by concert goer Manuel Souza who is alleging that the defendants’ negligence and gross negligence caused him serious injury, according to Complex. The lawsuit has opened the door for what is expected to be a flood of legal trouble for Live Nation, Travis Scott and other performers associated with the festival.
In fact, shortly after Complex reported the initial lawsuit, Fox News followed with an article claiming Drake is a defendant in a subsequent action. And as of 5:15 pm CTZ, reports of cases against the above named defendants and NRG Stadium are surfacing faster than one can note.
In court documents obtained by Billboard, the first case filed by Souza claims that the Astroworld Festival tragedy was “predictable and preventable” based partially on a stampede that occurred earlier in the day which caused people to be trampled at an entrance. Further, Souza alleges that the defendants consciously chose to ignore those signs and, perhaps more significantly, chose to ignore the suffering and serious distress that followed later in the night, all in order to protect prospective profits at the expense of fan safety.
In recent years, Scott has pleaded guilty twice in connection with his performances – once for reckless conduct when he told fans to climb over security barricades at Lollapalooza and once for inciting a riot at a performance in Arkansas. This documented history of negligent behavior appears to be at the center of most if not all of the newly filed lawsuits.
One attorney, Howard Hershenhorn, also called attention to Scott’s history of reckless onstage banter and even his lyrics as proof that the rapper encourages riotous behavior. “Make no mistake about it, his desire for chaos caused this horrific tragedy,” he said.
Buzzfeed gave legitimacy to that claim siting a video that shows Scott encouraging fans to jump from a balcony at New York’s Terminal 5 Venue in 2017. “Don’t be scared…They’re going to catch you,” he reportedly said.
According to the Houston Chronicle, Scott continued to perform for 37 minutes at last weekend’s Astroworld Festival after officials declared the concert a “mass casualty” event.
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