Music

Lamb of God's Randy Blythe indicted on charges of manslaughter

by Tyler Munro

The prosecution has three months to set a trial date after Lamb of God singer Randy Blythe was formally indicted yesterday on charges of manslaughter with intent to cause bodily harm following a fan’s death stemming from an incident at a show in the Czech Republic back in 2010.

The charges are controversial but very real. In June, Blythe was held for five weeks in a Czech prison after being arrested on a trip to the country, leading to uproar from the music industry surrounding the pretty ridiculous conditions on which he was being detained. Four days after his arrest and $200,000 later, Blythe made bail for the first time. He was not released. Fifteen days after that, he still hadn’t been charged, but his bail was doubled. Three days later, he paid that. Finally, on August 3rd, five weeks after his June 28 arrest, Blythe was released. He still hadn’t been charged.

But that changed yesterday, and now he’ll have to return to the Czech Republic once a date is set.

“While it is a tragedy that a Lamb of God fan died following a performance by the group, in no way do I feel that Randy did anything improper that led to the young man’s injuries and subsequent death,” said Lamb of God manager Larry Mazer in a statement published by the PRP. “The price of a ticket to a show does not entitle audience members access to a band’s stage.”

Mazer goes on to cite numerous videos that seem to prove Blythe’s innocence as well as testimony from the venue citing lax security and improper stage barricading.

The charges, fair or otherwise, allege that Blythe violently forced a young concertgoer off of the stage, where he landed on his head and sustained a head injury that two weeks later led to his death.