10 People Died At The Astroworld Music Festival Two Years Ago. What Happens Now?
Travis Scott's "Utopia" stars Dave Chappelle, Kanye and John Meyer
Carly Rae Jepson, Post Malone and Travis Scott have new albums. Utopia is Scott's first LP after the Astroworld disaster, which killed ten people.
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Nearly two years after ten people were killed in a stampede at the 2021 Astroworld festival, no charges have been filed, although several people, including event staff, have expressed safety concerns.
"Who exactly caused the deaths?" said Sandra Guerra Thompson, a criminal justice professor at the Houston Law Center. It's not an easy question to answer."
"It's very difficult to say unless you have strong evidence that someone who has a responsibility to keep you safe and should have known hasn't acted," she said.
A nearly 1,300-page report investigating the incident, released Friday by the Houston Police Department, said contract worker Reece Wheeler told authorities he saw people arguing and rapper Travis Scott's organizer warned the people could die just before going on stage.
In the report, investigators said Scott saw a man near the stage receiving medical treatment, but also said the general public seemed to be enjoying the show. He said he hasn't seen a serious problem, nor has he heard anyone tell him to quit the show.
Hip-hop artist Drake also told police it was hard to see what was in the crowd from the stage and he didn't hear anyone calling for the show to end.
While no charges have been filed, more than 500 lawsuits have been filed against concert promoters Live Nation and Scott, including several for deaths and injuries during the concert. Some of these allegations have been proven.
The death toll ranged from 9 to 27, with all 10 people dying of compression asphyxiation, medical experts said.
Summary: One year after the Travis Scott Astroworld disaster killed 10 people, are crowded concerts safer?
No charges have been filed against Travis Scott at Astroworld.
In June, a Texas grand jury declined to indict six people, including Scott, in the case. Prosecutors say the deceased's status narrows potential charges and excludes crimes such as murder, manslaughter and manslaughter.
Thompson said the number of people involved in the incident, sheer scale and high barrier to proving criminal negligence or recklessness are challenges for prosecutors in such cases.
“It goes back to who knows what happened, they say?” He says. "Are people being told that she's dead and they still want the concert to go on? Or, 'Hey, some people got hurt, is that unusual for events like this?'
Harris County Assistant District Attorney Alicia Harvey said the grand jury declined to indict prosecutors in the deaths of the two youngest spectators, aged 9 to 14, leaving only the abuse charges on minors.
Scott's attorney Kent Shaffer said the player was not responsible for the crash.
"I don't encourage people to do something that hurts other people," Shafer said.
MORE: Travis Scott Won't Be Prosecuted For Astroworld Concert That Killed 10 People
How did Travis Scott react to the Astroworld tragedy?
Scott previously said he was unaware of the death after the show. Since then, he's launched Project Heal, a $5 million initiative that includes funding to address safety issues at major festivals and events.
According to the police report, Scott told detectives that when Drake took the stage, he was told to leave the show after the set, but no one informed him of the emergency.
According to a police report released Friday, a contract worker saw people crushed just before Scott took the stage and was so concerned about what might happen that he texted the promoter: "Someone is going to die."
In a nearly 1,300-page report by security contractor Reece Wheeler, festival staff highlight the problems and warn of the deadly consequences.
“I have unknowingly stopped many trains. There was panic in people's eyes. This could escalate quickly,” Wheeler texted Shauna Borman, co-director of private security, at 9:00 p.m. the night of the incident. Wheeler later said, “I knew they were going to try to fight it, but I would like to stress out I'm not advising you to go on."
New security measures for concerts after the Astroworld tragedy
After the disaster, Texas Governor Greg Abbott created a task force to investigate concert safety and recommend safety and crowd control measures at mass gatherings.
The task force reported that in April 2022, people without tickets entered the open-air festival site hours before performances began, crowding staff and resulting in various injuries. He also found the process for authorizing state-level mass gatherings to be inconsistent.
The task force recommended establishing a command center authorized to suspend or cancel shows in response to safety concerns.
Unfortunately, sometimes the industry learns about safety practices after a disaster, says Thompson, a law professor. "In my opinion, the standard of these live concerts will change."
Contributed by: Juan A. Lozano and Ben Finley, Associated Press
