Listen to this story
--:--
5:32
Travis Scott promised to pay for the funeral of the people who died at the Houston concert
The singer who tries to vindicate himself, has also said that he manages psychological help for the families of the victims.
Rapper Travis Scott promised to pay for the funerals of the 8 people who died at the Astroworld festival, held last Friday, November 5, at the NRG park in the city of Houston, Texas, United States.
Through a statement that the exponent sent to the international press, he said that he has also processed psychological help for the victims' families through an association that he managed to carry out with Better Help, an organization that offers therapy through the web and via telephone.
On the other hand, the singer assured that he will reimburse the total cost of the festival tickets to the people who keep the event ticket. It should be noted that Scott has not spoken publicly since the festival episode, until now that he sent the press release to the media.
Various media have indicated that with these actions, Kylie Jenner's boyfriend seeks to amend the disaster caused during his presentation, since many have pointed out that he did not stop the concert on time, although there are those who affirm that the singer did everything he was in his hands, and the tragedy was almost inevitable.
They prepare demands
According to the Variety medium, in recent days there have been some lawsuits against the organizers of the Astroworld festival and Travis Scott himself.
Manuel Souza, one of the people who attended the event and was injured, petitioned the Harris County District Court on Saturday, November 6, alleging that the rapper, as well as ScoreMore, a Houston promoter who was part of the production of the concert in the NRG park, and Live Nation Entertainment (producer of the event), were negligent in the face of the tragedy, and in their opinion it could be avoided.
Souza has asked the organizers for compensation of one million dollars, as his negligence caused him serious injuries.
The Reuters news agency noted that at least 35 other people have filed lawsuits against the event organizers, as well as Drake, a guest artist during Scott's presentation.
Apparently the demands revolve around the lack of planning on the part of the organizers, and supposedly for not guaranteeing the total security of the event, mainly in the security protocol and the control of the crowds.
Wasem Abulawi, another of the attendees who was injured in the stampede, has alleged in his lawsuit that "the conditions were created and consented to by the organizers of the festival." Abulawi's legal representative has said that his client is in serious condition.
For its part, Live Nation Entertainment has sent a statement in which it assures that it has already met with the authorities responsible for the issue, and delivered the videos of the concert, and has offered attendees a refund and financial aid to the victims.
The tragedy
On November 5, the Astroworld Festival was held, in which during the presentation of the rapper, Travis Scott, there was a smoke stampede, when hundreds of attendees crowded to the stage.
The event left 8 people dead and about 300 injured, which were treated by the security forces immediately. The victims were between the ages of 14 and 27.
Through social networks, the hypothesis has run that the stampede was generated by a person who allegedly injected drugs into some attendees, who reacted in this way to the hallucinogen.
The theory that is gaining strength in the networks is based on the statements offered by the Chief of the Houston Police, Troy Finner, who said in a press conference that one of the police officers, during the work of attention to the public, found a person with a puncture in the neck.
However, the criminal investigation is still in progress and the conclusions have not been made public. The police have promised to determine the real motive that prompted the stampede.
Event organizers could face criminal charges
As indicated, the investigation is still in process, which is why it continues to analyze the evidence shown both by the victims and by the organizers of the event.
However, if the responsibility of both Travis and the representatives of the production companies is proven, they could face criminal charges, since the Texas penal code indicates that "reckless behavior that causes the death of someone is considered involuntary manslaughter. ".
Injury lawyer CJ Baker from the state of Texas, interviewed by Reuters, affirms that the safest thing in the case of this concert is that the event organizers, who were in charge of security, will face consequences.
However, he explains that the people who have made demands have to demonstrate the responsibility of the organizers or at least that they should know the actions that should be taken to prevent a tragedy like the one that was presented at the concert on November 5.
For them to face criminal charges, according to Baker, it must be shown that Scott or the organizers did nothing to calm the public at the time of the stampede once they learned that people were already dead or injured.
The injury lawyer, also consulted by Reuters, Richard Mithoff explains that in this case, what is expected is that the argument of the production companies of the festival as well as Travis, is that the event was "sudden and unexpected".
Despite this, in the case of Travis Scott, it is possible that his criminal record helps the plaintiffs to establish negligence, since in 2015 and 2017 the singer pleaded guilty to "disorderly conduct" in two concerts he gave.