HOUSTON– A judge has refused to dismiss hundreds of lawsuits filed against rap star Travis Scott over his role in the deadly 2021 Astroworld festival, which left 10 people dead in a massive crowd.
State District Judge Kristen Hawkins issued a one-page order denying Scott’s request to drop him and his touring and production company, XX Global, from the case. The order was signed on Tuesday but made public on Wednesday.
Scott’s lawyers had argued during a hearing on April 15 that he was not responsible for safety planning and monitoring for potential hazards during the concert on November 5, 2021.
They argued that Scott’s duties and responsibilities in relation to the festival related only to creative aspects, including performances and marketing.
However, Noah Wexler, an attorney for the family of Madison Dubiski, 23, one of the 10 people killed, said Scott, whose real name is Jacques Bermon Webster II, had a “deliberate disregard for security” at the sold-out festival. Wexler argued that Scott encouraged people who didn’t have tickets to break in and ignored orders from festival organizers to stop the concert when he was told to do so because people in the crowd were injured or died.
Earlier this month, Hawkins dismissed lawsuits against Drake and several other individuals and companies involved with the show.
The lawsuit filed by Dubiski’s family will be the first to go to trial on May 6.
The families of the 10 people who died, plus hundreds injured, have sued Scott and Live Nation – the festival’s promoter – as well as dozens of other individuals and entities.
After an investigation by Houston police, no charges were filed against Scott, and a grand jury declined to indict him and five other people on criminal charges related to the deadly concert.
The dead, ranging in age from 9 to 27, died of compression asphyxiation, which one expert likened to being crushed by a car.
Some of the lawsuits filed by the families of the dead and the hundreds of injured have been settled, including those filed by the families of four of the dead.
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