George Floyd’s family sues Kanye West for $250M after rapper disputes cause of death
LOS ANGELES, California — After making news for the wrong reasons, the family of an unarmed black man who died during an altercation with police is now suing his hip-hop producer and rapper, accusing him of failing to heed a coroner’s warning about the severity of the attack, which left Floyd dead at a protest against police brutality.
“Kanye West is responsible for Mr. Floyd’s death,” the family said in a statement, adding that “any person who uses their platforms to spread hatred and racism has no business being in a position of power.”
A coroner’s report on July 16 had found that Floyd, 42, died from multiple gunshot wounds to the head and torso, and the family said West had ignored the report.
“According to the coroner’s report, Kanye West was alerted to Floyd’s death on July 20, 2016, and allegedly ignored this fact,” the statement said. “As a result, Mr. Floyd was killed by the direct actions of a third-party, who was apparently armed with a firearm and used it against Floyd.”
After Floyd’s body was found, West issued a statement on Instagram saying “Mr. Floyd, who is currently in a coma, died on Saturday from complications from a massive internal brain bleed.”
West later tweeted that he was sorry if the rapper died after a confrontation with police officers.
His statement came on the same day that West, the Grammy-award winning rapper, and his family sued Floyd’s estate and several others for $250 million, accusing them of faking life and death reports, misdirecting media, and orchestrating the feud with the musician. Earlier this week, Floyd’s family said he died from a gunshot wound on July 18
