ALBANI. The lawsuit filed following the death of the Schenectady woman after attending the 2012 Camp Bisco festival could go to court, an appeals court ruled on Thursday.
The Third Department Appeals Division found that a local judge in Schenectady County had ruled that the trial could continue. Festival attorneys filed an appeal after losing their original application to essentially drop the claim.
The Court of Appeal found that the jury had several issues to decide. The Woman’s Legacy claims that the festival violated its duty to minimize predictable hazards and that the operators did not comply with regulatory requirements.
The lawsuit is related to the death of Heather Bynum, who was 24 years old during the 2012 festival at the Indian Lookout Country Club in Duanesburg.
While there, “after allegedly swallowing a harmful substance,” Bainum had a seizure, she lost consciousness and went into a coma, from which she never woke up. She died in 2016.
Bynum’s mother, Deborah Bynum, filed a lawsuit against the Biscoe camp in 2013, alleging that the negligence organization failed to prevent illicit drug use at the festival venues, which contributed to her daughter’s coma. After Bainum died, the inheritance successfully claimed the addition of wrongful death to the causes of the claim.
Among the findings of the appellate court was that the tapes and testimonies contradicted each other as to whether it took more or less than the required 15-minute threshold for access to a doctor.
The court also found that there were security issues, whether the sale of drugs was restricted or allowed, depending on who testified, and whether adequate security was ensured.
Bynum’s estate attorney, Jason A. Frament, welcomed the decision and said his client was “extremely happy” to be able to present their case to the jury.
“This has been going on for a long time, and we will finally get to court,” said Frament.
Biscoe Camp attorney Matthew J. Kelly indicated that while they disagree with the ruling, they stand ready to fully defend the case.
Kelly said he now expects the case to go to trial in late 2022 or early 2023.
Camp Bisco is an electronic music festival held annually in Duanesburg from 2007 to 2014. He attracts thousands of fans every year and is known for his drug use and partying. In 2012, in addition to Bainum’s initial seizure, one of the festival staff members died of a drug overdose.
The festival ended in Duanesburg after the 2014 concert. Neighborhood opposition to the festival grew, and amid questions about planning and finances, Schenectady County refused permission to hold mass gatherings in 2015.
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Categories: News, Schenectady County
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