Sony Music has been ordered to pay $160 million in damages following the death of two people at Cousin Stizz Concert on Sunday, November 12, 2017. The incident took place in Atlanta at the Masquerade Venue, where a man allegedly opened fire on the crowd. The police later arrested Jonathan Bautista and he was charged with two counts of murder after Giovan Diaz and Ewell Ynoa died from injuries sustained at the concert.
On Friday, December 15 of this year, a judge found Sony Music partially at fault for failing to protect concert-goers, following a hearing. Two other consolidated cases suing Sony on similar grounds are also included in the amount awarded.
In June 2018, the Beasley Allen Law Firm filed the lawsuit. Beasley Allen explained in a statement how the verdict was reached: “Obviously, these types of cases do not come around often. This was a mass shooting in a crowded concert,” the firm said. “There were multiple deaths, and Gio and Wells suffered significantly before losing their fight for life, as eyewitnesses outlined. The trial was incredibly emotional because of what these families, and the world, lost.”
“One of these men had been told he would be a father just a few hours before the shooting happened. Combine that with the fact the concert endangered everyone, and this defendant refused to participate in the legal process, and you get the type of verdict we saw here,” Allen continued.
The funds are meant to compensate the victims’ families. Sony has yet to comment on the verdict. (NME)
Leave a Comment