Rapper Travis Scott will not face criminal charges in Astroworld crowd surge, his lawyer says

Updated: Jun 29, 2023 / 04:21 PM CDT

FILE – Travis Scott performs at the Astroworld Music Festival in Houston on Nov. 5, 2021. Scott said he didn’t know that fans had died at his Astroworld festival until after his performance ended. In an interview with Charlamagne Tha God posted on Thursday, Dec. 9, Scott said he paused the performance a couple of times, but couldn’t hear fans screaming for help. (Photo by Amy Harris/Invision/AP, File)

HOUSTON (AP) — A Texas grand jury has declined to indict rapper Travis Scott in a criminal investigation into a massive crowd surge that killed 10 people at the 2021 Astroworld music festival in Houston, his attorney said Thursday.

Lawyer Kent Schaffer confirmed that the grand jury had met and decided not to indict his client on any criminal charges stemming from the concert. Schaffer said he was not sure what charges the grand jury had considered.

“He never encouraged people to do anything that resulted in other people being hurt,” Schaffer said, adding that the decision is “a great relief.”

Houston police and federal officials have been investigating whether Scott, concert promoter Live Nation and others had sufficient safety measures in place.

Schaffer said he feels sympathy for those who were killed at the festival and their families.

“But Travis is not responsible,” Schaffer said. “Bringing criminal charges against him will not ease their pain.”