A Texas grand jury determined rapper Travis Scott was not criminally responsible for the crowd crush that killed 10 people and injured thousands more at his 2021 Astroworld music festival, authorities announced Thursday.
The Harris County grand jury weighed and declined criminal charges against Scott and five other people related to fans’ deaths, District Attorney Kim Ogg said at an afternoon news conference.”It is tragic that 10 innocent people were killed while trying to enjoy an evening of music and entertainment, something many of us do routinely and without a second thought to our safety. But a tragedy isn’t always a crime, and not every death is a homicide,” Ogg said in a statement. “This grand jury’s determination has no impact on the many civil lawsuits pending.”
Ten people were killed Nov. 5, 2021, at Houston’s NRG Park, including 9-year-old Ezra Blount, when a crowd of about 50,000 people began pushing toward the stage. The other victims were ages 14 to 27. They all died from compression asphyxia.
Nearly 2,400 people required medical treatment.