{"id":5168,"date":"2026-03-18T13:33:11","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T13:33:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/2026\/03\/shaq-to-cover-funeral-expenses-for-late-12y-o-jada-west\/"},"modified":"2026-03-18T13:33:11","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T13:33:11","slug":"shaq-to-cover-funeral-expenses-for-late-12y-o-jada-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/2026\/03\/shaq-to-cover-funeral-expenses-for-late-12y-o-jada-west\/","title":{"rendered":"Shaq To Cover Funeral Expenses For Late 12Y.O. Jada West"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>Former NBA star Shaq, real name Shaquille O\u2019Neal, has pledged to cover funeral expenses for 12-year-old Jayda West, whose <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fox5atlanta.com\/news\/shaquille-oneal-cover-funeral-costs-12-year-old-who-died-after-fight\">death has shaken communities west<\/a> of Atlanta.<\/p>\n<p>O\u2019Neal announced Tuesday that he would pay for the final arrangements after learning about West\u2019s case through media coverage. The gesture came days after the girl died following a confrontation near a school bus stop in Georgia.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis story touched my heart the moment I saw it in the media,\u201d O\u2019Neal said. \u201cAs a father, my heart goes out to Jayda\u2019s family.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Shaquille O'Neal to pay funeral costs for 12-year-old girl who died after fight at bus stop\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/8H7q4vOkAcE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The Hall of Fame center said he hopes the contribution eases the family\u2019s burden during an unimaginable loss.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo parent should ever have to bury their child,\u201d O\u2019Neal said. \u201cIf there is anything I can do to ease even a small part of that burden, then it is the right thing to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>O\u2019Neal is coordinating the effort with Reginald B. Scandrett and Tim Pounds. Local officials said the goal is to support West\u2019s relatives as they navigate grief and unanswered questions surrounding the incident.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen a child\u2019s life is taken so tragically, it affects all of us,\u201d Pounds said. \u201cOur goal is simple. We want Jayda\u2019s family to know that they are not alone.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-shaq-to-cover-atlanta-child-jada-west-funeral-expenses\">Shaq To Cover Atlanta Child, Jada West, Funeral Expenses<\/h2>\n<p>West\u2019s death followed an altercation March 5 near a bus stop in the Ashley Place neighborhood. According to relatives, the confrontation occurred shortly after students exited a school bus.<\/p>\n<p>Family members said West stood up after the fight but later collapsed. She was hospitalized and placed in a coma. She died several days later.<\/p>\n<p>West had recently enrolled at Mason Creek Middle School, her mother previously told reporters. The family alleges she experienced bullying during her early weeks at the school.<\/p>\n<p>During a press conference Monday, relatives and attorneys called for a full investigation. They also questioned why the other student involved in the altercation was riding that bus route.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Mornings With Mero | HOT 97 Livestream 3-18-26\" width=\"500\" height=\"375\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/oUh8U9ti6BA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>The Villa Rica Police Department said the case remains under investigation as officers review evidence and witness statements.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, O\u2019Neal\u2019s offer to cover funeral costs has drawn praise from community members who say the gesture brings compassion during a devastating moment.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Former NBA star Shaq, real name Shaquille O\u2019Neal, has pledged to cover funeral expenses for 12-year-old Jayda West, whose death&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14044,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6],"tags":[10,9],"class_list":["post-5168","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","category-rss","tag-culture","tag-hip-hop"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5168","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14044"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5168"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5168\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5168"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5168"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/westcoastaftershock.com\/wca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5168"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}