The husband of a Syracuse woman killed in a deadly crowd surge after a concert at Rochester's Main Street Armory earlier this year is suing the building’s former owner — and the performers who were onstage.
Bruce Stephens filed the lawsuit in state Supreme Court in Onondaga County. His wife Aisha Haskins-Stephens was one of three women who died after being trampled as concertgoers rushed the exits back in March.
They were at the armory for a concert involving hip-hop artists GloRilla and Ricky Hampton, also known as Finnesse2tymes. Both performers are named in the lawsuit, along with Scott Donaldson, whose Main Street Armory LLC owned the building at the time. The suit also names a private security firm that was working the concert.
It’s the first wrongful death lawsuit filed over the fatal surge the led to the venue being shuttered and sold. The sister of another victim had gone to court this spring seeking to obtain records that might support such a lawsuit.
Stephens alleges all parties were “reckless, negligent and careless,” contributing to the dangerous “trap-like condition” that resulted in his wife’s death.
He further claims in the lawsuit that operators "had actual notice of the unsafe and/or dangerous conditions." Reached by phone, Stephens's lawyer said she could not elaborate at this time. Authorities investigated but concluded there was no basis to bring criminal charges.
Stephens is suing for an unspecified amount of damages.
