A crowd surge among approximately 50,000 attendees of the 2021 Astroworld festival caused a mass casualty event on November 5 which left 10 dead and hundreds injured. Now, 125 of those concertgoers have collectively filed a $750 million lawsuit against the festival’s creator and headliner, Travis Scott, along with guest star Drake, producer Live Nation and Apple, which live-streamed the event.
Houston attorney Tony Buzbee announced the suit on Tuesday, posting images of the legal documents to Instagram accompanied by a caption detailing the suit:
“We filed suit today on behalf of 125 Astroworld concertgoers, to include the family of Axel Acosta. Axel died at the concert,” the post began. “Many of the clients named in this lawsuit suffered broken bones, or twisted knees, or orthopedic injuries. Many have psychological [injuries]. I expect we will file on behalf of another 100 individuals very soon.
“I have been in contact with defense counsel for many of the entities sued, to include Live Nation,” Buzbee continued. “Our team has toured the site and collected evidence. We have taken statements from more than fifty witnesses. We have collected hours of [videotape] from almost every angle. No amount of money will fix what occurred on the night of November 5. However, based on what I know now, to include what I learned during discussions with opposing counsel, it is my firm belief that every individual who attended that concert and who suffered injury will be fairly compensated. I intend to make sure of it.”
As further noted by Complex:
Travis and Live Nation offered refunds to all those who attended the festival, but the lawsuit pushed back on the gesture by calling it “a transparent and grotesque effort of the Defendants to limit their liability.”
The announcement of the suit follows one made last week by civil rights attorney Ben Crump, who, along with his team, is representing more than 200 attendees in various lawsuits, as reported by The Hill. This includes the family of 9-year-old Ezra Blount, who died of his injuries Saturday night. As of Friday, 93 suits had been filed by Crump’s team, one of which represents 90 plaintiffs, according to Crump associate Alex Hilliard, who was present during a Friday press conference.
“This lawsuit is not just about getting justice for them,” Crump said at the press event. “But it’s about making sure the promoters and the organizers know that you cannot allow this to ever happen in the future, even if you have to immediately stop the concert.”
In addition to Acosta and Blount, deaths caused by the crowd surge include John Hilgert, 14; Brianna Rodriguez, 16; Jacob Jurinek, 20; Franco Patiño, 21; Axel Acosta, 21; Bharti Shahani, 22; Madison Dubiski, 23; Rodolfo Peña, 23; and Danish Baig, 27.