Following Drakeo the Ruler's tragic death in an altercation at the Once Upon a Time in LA festival in his hometown of Los Angeles, Tianna Pertue — the mother of the rapper's five-year-old son Caiden Caldwell — has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against promoter Live Nation on the child's behalf.
Obtained by Pitchfork, the suit claims that Live Nation and the other defendants named (C3 Presents, Bobby Dee Presents, stadium owners Los Angeles Football Club and Jeff Shuman) were "completely knowledgeable of the potential dangers posed to both their guests and the performers they hired based on numerous past incidents of violence and death at their hip hop events," specifically referencing the fact that the Astroworld tragedy took place just one month prior.
If defendants had "placed the safety and wellbeing of its guests and its invited artists ahead of profits," the filing alleges, "there would have been an adequate security plan and sufficient security guards and law enforcement presence to have prevented the unnecessary and untimely murder of Drakeo the Ruler at the hands of over 100 deadly gang members who inexplicably gained access to a restricted area of the venue engaging in an unrelenting and un-prevented attack for over 10 minutes."
The altercation is described as the lawsuit as many people "dressed in all red and wearing ski masks" attacking the rapper and his single unarmed security guard (given staffing restrictions in accordance with COVID-19 protocols), with his injuries culminating in a fatal stab wound to the neck.
It also suggests that the festival promoters "should have known" about Drakeo the Ruler's "very public feud" with West coast rapper YG and the Inglewood Bloods gang, though it adds that there's "no evidence that YG had anything to do with the events."
A representative for YG told The New York Times that police have not questioned the Compton rapper about the incident.
Caldwell (via Pertue) is seeking upwards of $25 million USD in non-economic damages in the wake of the loss of his father, with an additional $25 million in economic damages for lost earnings and financial support, and $10 million for Drakeo the Ruler's suffering before his death.
Obtained by Pitchfork, the suit claims that Live Nation and the other defendants named (C3 Presents, Bobby Dee Presents, stadium owners Los Angeles Football Club and Jeff Shuman) were "completely knowledgeable of the potential dangers posed to both their guests and the performers they hired based on numerous past incidents of violence and death at their hip hop events," specifically referencing the fact that the Astroworld tragedy took place just one month prior.
If defendants had "placed the safety and wellbeing of its guests and its invited artists ahead of profits," the filing alleges, "there would have been an adequate security plan and sufficient security guards and law enforcement presence to have prevented the unnecessary and untimely murder of Drakeo the Ruler at the hands of over 100 deadly gang members who inexplicably gained access to a restricted area of the venue engaging in an unrelenting and un-prevented attack for over 10 minutes."
The altercation is described as the lawsuit as many people "dressed in all red and wearing ski masks" attacking the rapper and his single unarmed security guard (given staffing restrictions in accordance with COVID-19 protocols), with his injuries culminating in a fatal stab wound to the neck.
It also suggests that the festival promoters "should have known" about Drakeo the Ruler's "very public feud" with West coast rapper YG and the Inglewood Bloods gang, though it adds that there's "no evidence that YG had anything to do with the events."
A representative for YG told The New York Times that police have not questioned the Compton rapper about the incident.
Caldwell (via Pertue) is seeking upwards of $25 million USD in non-economic damages in the wake of the loss of his father, with an additional $25 million in economic damages for lost earnings and financial support, and $10 million for Drakeo the Ruler's suffering before his death.
