The rapper endured a grueling deposition as part of the ongoing legal battle following the tragic events of the 2021 festival.
Travis Scott endured a grueling eight-hour deposition on Monday as part of the ongoing legal battle following the tragic events of the 2021 Astroworld Festival, according to The Associated Press. This marked the first time that 32-year-old Scott has faced an extensive round of questioning by attorneys regarding the festival that left 10 people dead and several injured.
The deposition, which took place in Houston, Texas, was part of the hundreds of lawsuits filed against Scott and other organizers of the Astroworld Festival. According to the outlet, the exhaustive questioning delved into various aspects of the event and its aftermath.
Scott's representative, Ted Anastasiou, issued a statement regarding the deposition, emphasizing the rapper's cooperation. "Travis Scott’s deposition is typical legal procedure," he said. "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."
Anastasiou added that Scott remains fully committed to his ongoing tour in support of his record-breaking album, Utopia, and his charitable endeavors aimed at supporting at-risk communities.
In June, a Harris County grand jury in Houston cleared Scott of any criminal wrongdoing in the fatal incident at his Astroworld Festival.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced at a news conference that "the grand jury found that no crime did occur," and that "no single individual was criminally responsible." The investigation lasted 19 months and required a painstaking review of hours upon hours of video footage from the fatal event and interviews with witnesses.
"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," said Ogg in a statement to ET. "This grand jury’s determination has no impact on the many civil lawsuits pending."
Ogg said grand jurors reviewed all of the evidence and considered the law that might be applicable before declining to indict Scott, festival manager Brent Silberstein, Live Nation's John Junell, and BWG production's Emily Ockenden and Shawna Boardman as well as Seyth Boardman from crowd management Contemporary Services Corporation.
In a statement to ET, Scott's attorney said the decision by the Harris County D.A.'s Office "confirms what we have known all along -- that Travis Scott is not responsible for the AstroWorld tragedy. This is consistent with investigative reporting by numerous media outlets and federal and state government reports that have squarely placed the onus for event safety crises on [organizers], operators and contractors -- not performers."
He continued, "While waiting patiently for the District Attorney’s decision to not file charges, Travis Scott has been inaccurately and wrongly singled out, despite stopping the show three separate times and being unaware of the events as they were unfolding. Now that this chapter is closed, we hope for the government efforts to focus on what is most important -- stopping future heartbreaking tragedies like AstroWorld from ever occurring again."
The tragedy occurred on Nov. 5, 2021, when over 50,000 fans gathered to attend the Astroworld Festival in Houston. As Scott's set began, a surge of attendees attempted to rush the stage, leading to numerous injuries and fatalities.
The day after the Astroworld tragedy, Scott spoke out on Twitter, writing, "I am absolutely devastated by what took place last night."
"My prayers go out to the families and all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival. Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life," he continued. "I am committed to working together with the Houston community to heal and support the families in need. Thank you to Houston PD, Fire Department and NRG Park for their support. Love you all."
A month later, Scott spoke out for the first time and, in an hour-long interview, denied hearing any signs of distress from the crowd while he was performing.
"It’s so crazy because I’m that artist too. Anytime you can hear something like that, you want to stop the show. You want to make sure fans get the proper attention they need," he said at the time. "Anytime I could see anything like that, I did. I stopped it a couple times to just make sure everybody was OK. And I really just go off the fans' energy as a collective, call and response. I just didn’t hear that."
Scott faced a number of civil lawsuits in the wake of the tragedy, though he's settled several of those suits.
RELATED CONTENT:
