Ultra Music Festival issues statement in wake of possible lawsuit

MIAMI – Organizers of the Ultra Music Festival released a statement Friday regarding their security measures in wake of the ongoing criticism resulting from a security guard's trampling in March. Miami police said organizers of the festival did not use proper fencing in the area where Erica Mack was trampled. Chief Manuel Orosa said the critical injuries Mack suffered could have been avoided if the proper fencing was used.

Here is the full statement from Ultra:

"The safety of our event, fans, crew and personnel has always been our number one concern. Despite our best efforts to continue to provide a safe and enjoyable event for our patrons and staff, certain criminal acts will always be beyond our control even though we continue to assure that security is of prime importance. Indeed, we never condone any criminal activities, especially those of a few unlawful gatecrashers whose actions are both illegal and reprehensible.

Since its inception in 1999, producers of Ultra Music Festival have continually adapted security measures to assure that the event is safe. In fact, during the 2014 event, organizers worked directly and collaboratively with the Bayfront Park Management Trust, the City of Miami Police Department, the DEA, Homeland Security and CSC, one of the nation's top rated private security companies, in deploying the biggest security team in the event's history. Daily security personnel for each of the three days included: 257 police officers per day, 49 more per day than the previous year, 18 undercover officers, and 12 bike detail (totaling 36 bike detail), in addition to various other high-level security measures throughout the production. 

To further serve our events professional environment, earlier this year event organizers hired Ray Martinez, who recently retired as the Chief of the Miami Beach Police Department, to head security measures. We know Chief Martinez will continue to assure we provide the highest of quality in our approach to the event's experience. In fact, event organizers and Chief Martinez are presently working with officials from Bayfront Park, the City of Miami Police Department and others to assure that the 2015 event remains at the forefront of successful festivals for all patrons. 

We continue to wish Ms. Mack the best for her future and hope she has made a full and complete recovery, but the complaint her lawyers have now filed as part of a lawsuit does not properly recite the facts of the unfortunate accident. Without question, event organizers believe that the incident was caused by illegal actions of unknown third parties for which it is not responsible."

The statement comes after news that Mack was preparing to file a lawsuit against the organizers of the music festival and the city of Miami Friday. She is suing for $10 million for the injuries she sustained in the incident.