George Floyd's Family Lawsuit Against Kanye West Is 'Forthcoming' After False Overdose Claim: Lawyer

Kanye West may be facing a $250 million lawsuit after his false claims about George Floyd's death.

In a press release issued Tuesday, the Witherspoon Law Group and Dixon & Dixon Attorneys at Law said Roxie Washington, the mother of Floyd's daughter, had retained them to sue the 45-year-old rapper for harassment, misappropriation, defamation and infliction of emotional distress on their daughter after comments West made on the podcast "Drink Champs" on Saturday.

The attorneys said they have issued a cease-and-desist letter to West over his remarks. On the podcast, West falsely claimed Floyd died from a fentanyl overdose despite the fact that Floyd's May 2020 death was ruled a homicide by the county medical examiner and an independent examiner hired by the Floyd family.

"Kanye's comments are a repugnant attempt to discount George Floyd's life and to profit from his inhumane death," said attorney Pat D. Dixon III in the statement. "We will hold Mr. West accountable for his flagrant remarks against Mr. Floyd's legacy."

In 2021, former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin, who pinned his knee to Floyd's neck for more than nine minutes while Floyd yelled, "I can't breathe," was convicted of murder. At his trial, numerous experts testified that even though he had fentanyl in his system, Floyd's death was a homicide.

"Free Speech Rights do not include harassment, lies, misrepresentation, and the misappropriation of George Floyd's legacy," said attorney Kay Harper Williams in the statement. "Some words have consequences and Mr. West will be made to understand that."

Floyd's sister LaTonya Floyd previously told PEOPLE the family was considering legal action.

"The judge took the gavel in his hands and slammed it on the table, and his death was ruled as murder — which we all know it was," she said.

"We have been through a lot. We have suffered a whole lot, and we are still suffering," she said. "The marches and the fights for justice are never gonna stop. For us to hear someone of color say something like that, it's a really painful place."

West's comments come after the rapper had his Twitter account restricted earlier this month for tweeting antsemitic comments, including saying he was going "death con 3 ON JEWISH PEOPLE" in a now-deleted tweet, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

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That move by Twitter came about after Instagram restricted the Grammy Award winner's account and deleted content from his page after he violated the social media platform's rules and guidelines, according to NBC News and CNN.

On Monday, Parler, the far-right social media site, announced West was acquiring the company.

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