JURY AWARDS VANESSA BRYANT $16 MILLION IN SUIT OVER KOBE BRYANT CRASH PHOTOS
Vanessa Bryant cried tears in court when the jury decided in her favor awarding her $16 million in the lawsuit against L.A County.
Vanessa alleged that deputies with the LA County Sheriff’s Department and fire captains with the LA County Fire Department captured and shared improper graphical photos of the bodies of her husband Bryant and their daughter Gianna.
Chris Chester accused the departments of the same allegations about his wife Sarah and daughter Payton who were flying in the same helicopter with Bryant. He is rewarded $15 million in the same lawsuit.
Vanessa and Chris complained that close-up photos of the dead bodies of their beloved family members were shared on multiple devices among the staff members of the sheriff’s department and fire department. The images were also leaked in public. This violation of their constitutional rights to the privacy of family photos caused them grief and anxiety.
Vanessa stated that she suffered panic attacks after knowing how the first responders leaked the photos. Chester also stated that he felt ‘grief cmpounded on grief’ when he got to know about those photos soon after the death of his beloved ones.
In addition, deputies were accused of destroying evidence after deleting the crash site photos and resetting the phone to factory settings that were used to share those photos.
Mira Hashmal, the county’s attorney, defended his client by saying that those images were never made public and were taken to be used as an essential tool to find out more details about the crash. She said that Vanessa and Chris cannot complain about emotional distress from the photos that they never got to see. She said, ‘this is picture’s case and there are no pictures.
The jury started deliberations on Wednesday. It took no more than 4 to 5 hours for the jury to find out that both LA County Sheriff’s Department and LA County Fire Department are rightly accused of violating Vanessa’s and Chester’s family’s legal rights to privacy.
Total damages awarded to Vanessa Bryant included $2.5 million for past LASD damages, $7.5 million for future LASD damages, and $1 million for past LACFD damages. The verdict awarded Chester $1.5 million in past LASD damages, $7.5 million in future damages, and $1 million in past LACFD damages.
Vanessa is the widow of NBA legend Kobe Bryant and a grieved mother of 13 years old Gianna Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash that killed nine on Sunday, 25th January 2020, in Calabasas California. Bryant was flying to a youthful basketball game accompanied by his daughter.
