Randy Blythe Prepares For Court
Lamb of God frontman Randy Blythe is preparing to stand trial over the death of a fan in the Czech Republic – and while admitting he’s worried about proceedings, he insists returning to Prague is the right thing to do.
He spent five weeks in a Czech jail last year after being arrested in connection with Daniel Nosek’s passing away in 2010, following a Lamb of God show.
Nosek died a month after the performance, but Blythe is accused of pushing him off stage on the night, leading to a brain haemorrhage two weeks later. If he’s found guilty he could spend up to ten years in prison.
Despite a White House petition collecting nearly 30,000 signatures, Blythe was all-but ignored by US officials while he was behind bars.
With the trial date set for next month, the singer says he’s determined to do what he feels is right.
“The last two or three days I have been getting ready mentally to leave my home and return to Prague,” he writes on Instagram. “It’s not something I particularly want to do – but inside, my gut and heart tells me it is the right thing to do. I cannot turn my back on the right thing.”
A spokesman for the Czech legal system confirms: “We have issued Randy Blythe with a court summons, and he is obliged to attend the hearing in person. The trial will determine the culpability of Blythe and his potential punishment.”
In December US assistant secretary of state Michael Posner released a statement in response to the White House petition, 105 days after the deadline had passed. He said: “Pending Mr Blythe’s trial, we cannot discuss the details of his case. The Department Of State noted in its 2011 Human Rights Report that in the Czech Republic, ‘The laws provide for the right to a fair trial, and the independent judiciary generally enforced this right.’”
Later in December the singer spoke of his outrage after some Lamb of God fans refused to observe a one-minute silence for victims of the Connecticut school massacre.