A mother in Houston, Texas is dealing with compounded grief after receiving a $10,000 invoice from a funeral home that promised free services for her 5-year-old daughter. Monica Hicks is calling out the funeral home following the death of Zah’Layah Walton. The child was fatally shot in a case of suspected mistaken identity on September 19.
According to KHOU 11, investigators said the incident occurred near an apartment complex in the Cypress area of northwest Harris County. At around 11:30 p.m., Hicks was driving her five children home when 47-year-old Jeremy Porter allegedly fired multiple shots into the back of the family’s vehicle.
Police said Porter allegedly mistook the car for another. During the incident, Walton was struck in the back of her head. Officials later pronounced the child dead at a hospital. On September 20, the Harris County Sheriff’s Office arrested Porter and charged him with capital murder.
RELATED: Florida Funeral Home Worker Found Dead After Being Accused Of Sexually Abusing Corpse
Houston Mother Slams Funeral Home For Taking Advantage Of Family’s Grief
While trying to lay Walton to rest, Hicks faced more grief as she claimed a funeral home tried to take advantage of her family during their loss. On Thursday (September 24), Hicks and several community activists warned others to pay attention and don’t fall for any okey-dokes when dealing with Pruitt’s Funeral Home in the Heights.
Hicks claimed they promised to handle Walton’s funeral arrangements pro bono, only for them to later break their promise. Hick said she was later given an invoice totaling nearly $10,000. Meanwhile, the funeral home denies the claims. They insisted that by law they had to provide an itemized statement. Hicks said the funeral home reached out almost immediately after Walton’s passing. Because of their initial generosity, the family took them up on the offer.
Walton was transported from the medical examiner’s officer to Pruitt’s Funeral Home. But when Hicks got the invoice, she was forced to remove her daughter’s remains from Pruitt’s facility. She then had to transfer them to another funeral home. The family is now working to raise money for Walton’s funeral and burial plot.
#Socialites, be sure to check out the post below, then leave us your thoughts in a comment after!