The June 2, 1991 riot that Axl Rose kicked off by attacking a fan and then bailing ended with 65 people getting hurt and $300,000 in damage to the venue and the band’s equipment, per Dayton Daily News. While Rose was charged with several crimes, he got off with a hefty fine and probation. It was one of two riots Rose helped incite that summer during Guns N’ Roses’ world tour to promote the upcoming release of their massive hit double album “Use Your Illusion 1 & 2” on September 17, 1991. The other took place two months later in Montreal, in which the band went on stage two hours late and ended the show early. The second riot caused $400,000 in damage before spilling out into the city’s streets where crazed fans smashed windows, set fires, and looted stores.
“Every gig after Riverport, the threat of violence hung in the air — or at least it felt that way to me as I sat around stewing, waiting for our singer to turn up each night, listening nervously for the festive noise of the arena to transform into the low rumble of a big, angry crowd,” Duff McKagen, the band’s bassist, recalled in his memoir “It’s So Easy: And Other Lies.”
