People flee the National Cheerleaders Association All-Star Championship on March 1.
DALLAS - Several individuals who attended the national cheerleading competition in March are suing over the stampede that erupted after a shooting false alarm.
The lawsuit, Katie Albold et al v. Varsity Spirit et al, was filed June 6 in Dallas County and seeks more than $1 million in damages.
According to the lawsuit, on March 1 “chaos and mass panic” caused stampedes during the National Cheerleaders Association All-Star National Championship when series of loud, repetitive bangs – perceived by those in attendance as gunshots – triggered dangerous stampedes throughout the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center Dallas and Omni Dallas Hotel.
“Injuries abounded; all of which could have been prevented if the operators of the facility and event producers had done anything in the way of security and safety planning to keep patrons safe,” the suit states. “But that did not occur. Instead, hundreds of people were injured, physically and psychologically.”
The plaintiffs are seeking damages as result of the defendants' alleged “failure to prevent these terrifying circumstances due to lack of adequate safety and security measures.”
The suit further accuses the defendants of failing to ensure the plaintiffs’ safety and security during the “mass panic and stampedes.”
“Many parents were separated from their children during the Incident, leaving participants and attendees to agonize over the well-being of their loved ones,” the suit states. “Despite being required to have an ‘Active Shooter… (and) Evacuation Plan,’ when the mass panic ensued, the security and event staff failed to… communicate protocols for safe crowd behavior and evacuation.
“In fact, rather than facilitating safe and efficient protocol for such an emergency, many individuals working for Defendants ran with and joined the stampedes, contributing to the panic and chaos.”
The suit goes into detail on how the plaintiffs and their family members suffered and were injured during the incident.
Shortly before the incident, Plaintiff Maria Susino was at a restaurant in the Omni Hotel for a meal with her son-in-law when a fight erupted in the back room of the bar, during which a loud bang went off and someone yelled, "He's got a gun!" according to the complaint.
“When she exited the building, Plaintiff Susino started running toward the Convention Center Arena when a large mass of attendees exited the Arena in stampede,” the suit states. “Plaintiff Susino was pushed down and trampled, causing serious bodily injury in the form of potentially torn shoulder, severely bruised breast, bruised knees, and lump in her right leg.”
The defendants in the suit include Varsity Spirit, Varsity Brands, OVG Facilities, Oak View Group, Omni Hotels Management and Global Spectrum.
The plaintiffs are represented by the law firms of Paul LLP and Aldous Law.
