The Oscar-winning rap group Three 6 Mafia has asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by man who claims he was severely beaten at a concert when fans followed lyrics of the song “Let’s Start A Riot.”
An attorney for the group filed a motion last week in Allegheny County Court saying there is no “genuine issue of material fact” to the complaint. The lyrics are protected under the First Amendment, the motion said.
Ramone Williams claimed in his lawsuit that he was beaten during a concert at a now-defunct Pittsburgh nightclub on Aug. 26, 2003. Before the song was over, Williams alleges, he was thrown to the floor, hit with a chair, stomped on and kicked in the face. His injuries included a fractured jaw.
Williams, who was 19 at the time of the concert, won a default judgment against the club. It closed, and its former operators did not answer the complaint.
Three 6 Mafia, of Memphis, Tenn., won an Academy Award this year for the song “It’s Hard Out Here for a Pimp” from the film “Hustle & Flow.”