Photo: Jonathan Bachman / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images
Shaquille O’Neal is stepping in to help the family of 12-year-old Jada West.
The former NBA star has offered to cover Jada’s funeral expenses after the Georgia middle school student died days after a fight near her Villa Rica bus stop, according to WSB-TV Atlanta. O’Neal said the story “touched” him as a father and that no parent should have to carry that financial burden while grieving.
“This story touched my heart the moment I saw it in the media,” O’Neal said in a statement, per WSB-TV Atlanta. “As a father, my heart goes out to Jada’s family. No parent should ever have to bury their child, and if there is anything I can do to ease even a small part of that burden, then it is the right thing to do.”
The offer was announced in a joint release involving Douglas County Sheriff Tim Pounds and Henry County Sheriff Reginald Scandrett. O’Neal has a home in Henry County and serves there as the sheriff’s community relations chief.
Jada, a Mason Creek Middle School student, reportedly got into a fight after getting off the school bus on March 5. Investigators have been reviewing cellphone video that appears to show Jada and another girl exchanging punches near the bus stop before an adult steps in. The footage ends with Jada walking away with her backpack.
She later collapsed and was taken to the hospital, where she died on March 8.
WSB-TV reported that Jada’s death was linked to a brain injury, while the Associated Press reported that she collapsed after the fight and that an autopsy is pending. Authorities have not publicly announced a final cause of death.
Her family has said Jada had been bullied before the fight. Speaking to WSB-TV, her mother, Rashunda McClendon, said, “She was loving, she was kind, she didn’t deserve this.”
The family has reportedly retained attorneys to investigate possible negligence connected to the circumstances around her death.
Sheriff Pounds said the loss reaches beyond one family. “When a child’s life is taken so tragically, it affects all of us,” he said, according to WSB-TV. “Our goal is simple. We want Jada’s family to know that they are not alone and that communities across Georgia stand with them during this incredibly difficult time.”
Police in Villa Rica are continuing to investigate the fight and review the video to determine whether charges are warranted.
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