Another lawsuit has been filed against Travis Scott in the aftermath of the Astroworld tragedy, this time from the family of a teenage victim.
John Hilgert was just 14-years-old when he was killed during the crowd surge at the Houston festival on Friday, November 5th. As reported by Rolling Stone, the lawsuit has been filed by the late teenager’s parents, Chris and Nichole Hilgert. Among a lengthy list of named defendants are Scott and Live Nation Worldwide and its subsidiaries.
A further lawsuit has also been filed on behalf of Adam and Jennifer Cox, parents of a minor named only as “B.C.”, a friend of Hilgert’s who was injured during the crowd surge. Both lawsuits claim gross negligence on the part of all the named defendants.
The Hilgert family are also demanding that changes be made to the way concerts are organised in the future. They cite security, available medical facilities, and the elimination of general admission seating as things that would improve safety at concerts.
“The pain of our loss from our son John not making it home alive from an event such as this is intolerable,” Chris Hilgert said in a statement. “He was a beautiful young man who simply wanted to enjoy his first concert event with friends, whom he treasured spending time with more than anything else.”
He continued: “This pain should never be felt by anyone over a loved one attending a live concert. Our sole aim in filing this lawsuit is to prevent this type of tragedy from ever happening again at a live concert.
“There is no excuse for the poor crowd design, event execution and lack of response that was exercised at this festival that resulted in the tragic death of our son and nine others along with scores of other people that were innocently injured.”
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The Hilgert and Cox lawsuits are just the latest in a long line of lawsuits filed against Scott and Live Nation. Many more are expected to follow.
The rapper has been keeping busy in the meantime: he was spotted in public for the first time since the Astroworld tragedy, playing golf with Michael Jordan and Mark Wahlberg.
For more on this topic, follow the Hip Hop Observer or the Live Music Observer.
