Travis Scott Questioned Over Astroworld Tragedy
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Travis Scott faced questions about the 2021 Astroworld tragedy during a civil deposition that reportedly lasted almost eight hours Monday, Sept. 18, according to The Associated Press.
The deposition, which took place in Houston, was tied to the hundreds of lawsuits that have been filed over the crowd crush, in which 10 people were killed and hundreds more were injured. For Scott, it marked the first time he’d been questioned by lawyers about the tragedy.
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A rep for Scott, Ted Anastasiou, described the deposition as a “typical legal procedure” before stressing the recent news that Scott would not face criminal charges over the Astroworld case. “What is not typical is how the media continues to focus on him despite being cleared of any wrongdoing by extensive government investigations, including by the Houston Police Department,” he said.
Anastasiou continued: “Travis is fully cooperating with the legal process while still remaining committed to his tour in support of his record-breaking album, Utopia, and his charitable efforts to support at-risk communities.”
It was announced back in June that a Grand Jury decided not to bring criminal charges against Scott and other Astroworld organizers and workers. Scott, Live Nation, its subsidiary Scoremore, and others involved (such as security companies) have also settled some civil lawsuits brought by the families of Astroworld victims.
Still, Scott and others are facing billions of dollars in potential damages tied to the hundreds of civil claims alleging wrongful death, personal injury, and negligence. Those have been wrapped into one large multi-district litigation in Harris County. Despite the high-profile nature of the case, it’s been proceeding rather quietly thanks to a gag order upheld by a Texas court in June. The order has kept lawyers from speaking out on a wide range of topics pertaining to the case, such as witnesses and their testimonies, physical evidence, or as broad as “any information that is substantially likely to materially prejudice the trial.”
The first trial related to these lawsuits is currently scheduled to start May 6, 2024. Scott and the other defendants have repeatedly denied all wrongdoing.
Scott’s deposition comes about a month before he launches his first full-fledged tour since the Astroworld tragedy. The run is set to kick off Oct. 11 in Charlotte, North Carolina, with dates scheduled through Dec. 29 in Toronto. While early reports indicated that Scott had booked a show in Houston — which would’ve also been his first in the city since Astroworld — the tour’s current itinerary does not include a show in the rapper’s hometown.
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