Connect with us

Families of Astroworld victims reject Travis Scott’s offer to pay for Funeral Expenses

Travis Scott performs on day one of the Astroworld Music Festival at NRG Park on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021, in Houston. Amy Harris/Invision/AP

Updates

Families of Astroworld victims reject Travis Scott’s offer to pay for Funeral Expenses

GET TOP STORIES VIA INBOX

Three days after a devastating crowd surge at Travis Scott’s Astroworld that killed ten people and wounded hundreds more, the rapper publicly declared that he would pay for victims’ funerals. However, some of the deceased’s relatives have told Rolling Stone that they are not interested.

Following the revelation that the family of 9-year-old Astroworld victim Ezra Blount turned down Travis Scott’s offer to pay for the child’s burial expenses, it has now been reported that four additional families have also turned down the offer.

“Your client’s offer is declined,” the family’s lawyer, Bob Hilliard, wrote to the rapper’s attorney in an email on Tuesday, Nov. 30, 2021.

“I have no doubt Mr. Scott feels remorse. His journey ahead will be painful. He must face and hopefully see that he bears some of the responsibility for this tragedy,” Hilliard added.

“There may be, and I hope there is, redemption and growth for him on the other side of what this painful process will be — and perhaps one day, once time allows some healing for the victims and acceptance of responsibility by Mr. Scott and others, Treston and Mr. Scott might meet — as there is also healing in that,” Hilliard wrote. “For now, Mr. Scott must respect the fact that his pain and his devastation pale to Treston’s, Ezra’s mom, and the other victims.”

Treston Blount was carrying his 9-year-old son, Ezra, on his shoulders as concertgoers rushed to the stage. Blount collapsed, and his son fell. Ezra died after being placed in a medically induced coma after suffering brain, kidney, and liver injuries during the concert crush on Nov. 5.

Trending:

Scott’s offer, according to Philip Corboy, attorney for the families of 21-year-old friends Jacob Jurinek and Franco Patino, Tony Buzbee, attorney for the family of 21-year-old Axel Acosta, and Richard Mithoff, attorney for the family of 14-year-old John Hilgert, was an attempt to lessen public pressure rather than a genuine display of remorse.

Mithoff described the offer as “demeaning and inappropriate given the magnitude of the tragedy” in a written statement.

“The Hilgerts are not about to allow someone else to pay for their son’s funeral. It was one of the last things they could do for their son,” Mithoff wrote.

“It was not an offer [the Hilgerts] were going to seriously consider,” Richard Mithoff, speaking on behalf of John Hilgert’s family, told the publication. “Of all the things this case is about, that’s the least of any concern. This family is set on making change and ensuring this never happens at a concert again. I find offering to pay for funerals frankly demeaning and really inappropriate to the magnitude of the tragedy that unfolded.”

Ezra’s aunt, Taylor Blount, stated on NBC’s “TODAY” show that the gathering was a “death trap.”

“The crowd just started going crazy, and Treston goes, ‘I can’t breathe. I can’t breathe,'” she said.

She went on to say that after the performance, her family couldn’t find Ezra and had to contact nearby hospitals.

Corboy claims he was called first by Scott’s criminal counsel, and then by well-known attorney Daniel Petrocelli, whom Scott just hired. Corboy stated that he had brief meetings with Jurinek and Patino’s families, who “realized quickly that all he was trying to do was trying to lessen the public outcry on his case.”

“It took them each about three seconds to say ‘No, no no.’”

Corboy claims that going via lawyers rather than reaching out directly makes the gesture appear insincere and impersonal. “If he’s trying to impress upon the families that he’s sincere and has concern for them and realize that funerals can be expensive, what Scott’s team did is not the way to do it,” Corboy says. “You don’t get a piece of paper in the mail from a lawyer in Beverly Hills who says he represents Travis Scott. These families are raw right now; that lacks any personal touch.”

Popular Posts:

MUST READ:

GET TOP STORIES VIA INBOX

Continue Reading
Advertisement
You may also like...
Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

New Stories

Trending now

Popular Articles

Most Popular:

To Top
yes