Travis Scott’s lawyer has spoken out regarding the timing of a report pertaining to the Astroworld deaths in 2021 that was released by the Houston Police Department this week.
According to TMZ, Kent Schaffer released a full statement on Saturday (July 29) that takes aim at Houston PD and its decision to release the report on Friday (July 28) — the same day as the rapper’s new album, Utopia.
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“The timing of the Houston Police Department report’s release, coinciding with the launch of Travis Scott’s highly anticipated album, is anything but coincidental,” Schaffer told the outlet
“Travis Scott and his team were, as anticipated, fully cleared of any wrongdoing associated with the Astroworld tragedy by a grand jury based on the very report released today.
“It is outrageous that HPD has chosen to resort to tactics that attempt to discredit Travis and his team, casting doubt on how the unfortunate events at Astroworld actually transpired while deflecting blame from their own critical failures.”
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He went on: “Travis’s commitment to his audience’s safety and well-being is well-documented. As reported countless times, he actively stopped the show three separate times. Contrary to the HPD report’s inaccuracies, the concert did end at the exact time communicated to Travis. Meanwhile, Houston police officers present at the event did not intervene during the unfolding situation. They were observed throughout the show standing by idly, buying merch and even filming the concert in its entirety.
“We encourage the Houston PD to make peace with the fact that Travis Scott and his team were found innocent of any wrongdoing and to focus on what really matters – making sure tragedies like Astroworld never occur again under their watch.”
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According to the report, during the night of the tragedy, Travis Scott had no idea what was going on around him during the concert.
The redacted report, which is more than 1200 pages long, was released by the Houston Police via Twitter. The law enforcement agency confirmed that only certain details relating to privacy (such as social security numbers) were redacted in accordance with local law, but that everything else was true and correct per police attestations.
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When Officer M.L. Barrow interviewed Scott on November 7, 2021, the rapper said he was completely unaware of the extent of the tragedy that left 10 dead — including a 10-year-old boy — and thousands injured.
“He stated he was in a ‘trance’ going through his performance and getting into the music,” read the report. “He noted that there was not a ‘high commotion’ and that everybody was just looking at him perform.”
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The report continued: “He clarified by stating he was told in his earpiece, ‘Yo Trav, you got to wrap it up, its getting kinda hectic out there.’ He stated again that he was supposed to go until 10:30 but he was told to stop short after Drake got off the stage. Again, there was no mention to the severity of the situation.”
Last month, TMZ was on hand when a Texas grand jury “no-billed” — or, declined to bring criminal charges. The “SICKO MODE” rapper didn’t testify in his own defense at the grand jury hearing, according to his attorney Kent Schaffer.
Scott has always insisted that he wasn’t aware of the ongoing stampede at the concert, but dozens of civil lawsuits have been brought against him and are still pending, according to the outlet.
The outcome of the criminal case will have no bearing on the civil cases that are currently in litigation. The Harris County District Attorney, who brought forth the criminal charges, declined to comment on the outcome.
On November 5, 2021, Travis Scott held the opening night of his Astroworld concert. By the end of the evening, eight people were dead and hundreds more were injured after the crowd of approximately 50,000 concert attendees started flooding the NFG Stadium stage.
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As Houston Fire Chief Samuel Peña explained: “The crowd began to compress toward the front of the stage, and people began to panic.” The melee began around 9:15 p.m. local time, and once Scott and organizers Live Nation realized what was going on, they immediately stopped the show.
Two more people succumbed to their injuries after the concert.
