Half of Astroworld victims' families reject Travis Scott's offer to cover funeral costs
Families of half the victims who died at Travis Scott‘s Astroworld festival last month have rejected the rapper’s offer to pay for funeral expenses.
In the days following the tragic crowd surge at the Houston festival on November 5 that left 10 people dead and hundreds more injured, Scott offered to cover the cost of all victims’ funerals. However, Rolling Stone is reporting that the families of five victims have rejected his offer.
Earlier this week, the family of nine-year-old Ezra Blount said they wouldn’t be accepting the rapper’s offer, with the family’s attorney Bob Hilliard writing that he has “no doubt Mr. Scott feels remorse” over the incident.
“His journey ahead will be painful,” Hilliard continued. “He must face and hopefully see that he bears some of the responsibility for this tragedy.”
Now, more lawyers are speaking on the decision to refuse Scott’s offer. Richard Mithoff, attorney for the family of 14-year-old victim John Hilgert who recently filed a lawsuit against the rapper over the tragedy, said the offer was “demeaning and really inappropriate”.
“It was not an offer [the Hilgerts] were going to seriously consider,” Mithoff told Rolling Stone.
“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.”
Philip Corboy, attorney for families of both Jacob Jurinek and Franco Patino, said that Scott’s method of reaching out – through legal teams – made the families realise “that all he was trying to do was trying to lessen the public outcry on his case.”
“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 continued.
“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.”
Tony Buzbee, representing the family of Axel Acosta, had more frank words for Scott, calling the offer “bullshit.”
“If you gave a shit about these families, you wouldn’t have to put out a press release for everyone to see saying he’s willing to pay for a funeral,” Buzbee continued.
“He says he feels sorry for them but he’s quick to say it wasn’t his fault. He’s no different than any defendant pointing fingers to someone else. They don’t want funeral expenses from him. Whatever we get from him, we’re going to get through the court system.”
Buzbee previously filed a $750million (£555m) lawsuit on behalf of 125 attendees of the festival, with the suit reading “No amount of money will ever make these Plaintiffs whole; no amount of money can restore human life.
“But, the damages sought in this case attempts to fix, help, or make up for the harms and losses suffered by these Plaintiffs-nothing more and nothing less.”
That lawsuit is just one of many filed against Travis Scott, Live Nation and other parties involved in the festival. A negligence lawsuit, filed by Blount’s family and attorney Thomas J. Henry, filed a $2billion lawsuit on behalf of 282 people who hired him for legal representation.
