The family of 9-year-old Ezra Blount, the youngest victim of the Astroworld Festival tragedy, has denied Travis Scott’s offer to pay for his funeral. As we’ve been reporting, the rapper announced he’d be covering the costs of the services for each of the deceased concertgoers.
In a letter obtained by Rolling Stone on Monday, the family’s lawyer Bob Hilliard shut down the performer’s legal team proposal, sharing:
“Your client’s offer is declined. 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.”
The musician’s lawyer Daniel Petrocelli insisted to Hilliard, who is representing the Blount family with Ben Crump, that acceptance of the money would “have no effect” on the lawsuit Ezra’s father, Treston, filed against the singer and other parties he feels are responsible for the catastrophe. Still, it seems Treston isn’t ready or willing to accept help from the person, who he believes needs to be held accountable in part for his young boy’s death.
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According to Rolling Stone, Petrocelli delivered a letter to the Blount’s lawyers the day after Ezra was laid to rest in Texas last Tuesday, with it reading:
“Travis is devastated by the tragedy that occurred at the Astroworld Festival and grieves for the families whose loved ones died or were injured. Travis is committed to doing his part to help the families who have suffered and begin the long process of healing in the Houston community. Toward that end, Travis would like to pay for the funeral expenses for Mr. Blount’s son.”
That’s about the least he could do in the wake of what happened…
Interestingly, this wasn’t the first time Kylie Jenner’s boyfriend tried to make amends with the grieving family. Hilliard told the outlet that he and his co-counsel Crump rejected an invitation for Scott to meet the Blounts, explaining:
“We were pretty firm. With all due respect, no. This isn’t a photo-op story here. This is a ‘who’s responsible and why’ type of investigation. And he’s on the shortlist.”
Seriously! The thought that Travis would try to get a quick “photo-op” to look like he is putting in the work to make amends for the devastation his allegedly negligent actions caused is so disgusting. Even if the Sicko Mode artist means well, a meeting would only serve comforting his own guilt than providing any relief for the devastated fam. This isn’t the time to make himself look better but to own up to his actions and pay the consequences.
Hilliard believes there might come a time when meeting face-to-face with the Texas native would be helpful for the family’s “healing” process, but now is not that time. He continued:
“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.”
As Perezcious readers know, father and son duo Treston and Ezra attended the Houston-based concert held at NRG Park earlier this month. Ezra was on his father’s shoulders when a deadly crowd rush began. Trenton claims hes passed out in the audience, which left his 9-year-old son was trampled to death. On November 14, the young child had died after being placed in a medically-induced coma due to his injuries.
Related: Astroworld Is The Latest, Not The Worst: A History Of Deadly Concert Incidents
The chaos of his son’s final moments has haunted Treston, with their lawyer adding:
“To lose a child in the manner Treston lost Ezra compounds the pain. As a parent, Treston cannot help but agonize over the terrible idea that Ezra’s last minutes were filled with terror, suffering, suffocation, and worst of all surrounded by strangers, his dad unconscious underneath the uncontrolled crowd.”
There are no words.
Ezra was the youngest to succumb to his injuries. The other nine victims were John Hilgert, 14, Brianna Rodriguez, 16, Jacob Jurinek, 20, Franco Patino, 21, Axel Acosta, 21, Rodolfo ‘Rudy’ Peña, 23, Madison Dubiski, 23, Danish Baig, 27, and Bharti Shahani, 22.
Stormi Webster’s father is currently facing 120 lawsuits of more than $3 billion. Live Nation, ScoreMore, Cactus Jack, and Drake (who appeared as a special guest) have also been named in some of the suits.
The day after the incident, Scott took to social media to discuss the tragedy, saying:
“I’m absolutely devastated by what took place last night. My prayers go out to the families all those impacted by what happened at Astroworld Festival. Houston PD has my total support as they continue to look into the tragic loss of life. I am committed to working together with the Houston community to heal and support the families in need.”
He has not publicly spoken about the festival since. Our hearts go out to all the families mourning their loved ones after the horrific event. To learn how to support the Blount family in this time of need, visit their GoFundMe page HERE.
[Image via MEGA/WENN & GoFundMe]
The post Travis Scott’s Offer To Pay For Funeral Expenses Of 9-Year-Old Astroworld Victim 'DECLINED' By Family appeared first on Perez Hilton.
