Half of the families of victims who died at Travis Scott's Astroworld festival on November 5 have declined the rapper's offer to cover their loved one's funeral expenses, Rolling Stone reports.
Earlier this week, it was reported that the family of Ezra Blount, the youngest victim to succumb to injuries sustained during the crowd surge at the festival, had rejected the performer's offer to cover costs for his funeral.
Now it has emerged that at least four more families have followed suit. Attorneys for half of the families who lost a loved one as a result of the crowd surge last month told Rolling Stone that they have declined Scott's offer. They say would rather let a judge decide what is the best course of justice.
Philip Corboy, the lawyer who represents the families of 21-year-old friends Jacob Jurinek and Franco Patino, Tony Buzbee, a rep for the family of 21-year-old Axel Acosta, and Richard Mithoff, a lawyer for the family of 14-year-old John Hilgert, branded Scott's offer as disingenuous.
Mithoff said: "It was not an offer [the Hilgerts] were going to seriously consider. 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."
Corboy says he was initially contacted by Scott's criminal attorney before Daniel Petrocelli, another of Scott's attorneys, got in touch too.
Corboy said his grieving clients "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.'"
He said that reaching out to the victims' families through attorneys rather than Scott personally reaching out felt impersonal.
Corboy said: "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.
"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."
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