After police released gruesome photographs of NBA great Kobe Bryant’s deadly helicopter accident two years ago, Los Angeles County has agreed to pay his widow approximately $29m (£24m). Seven other people, including Bryant and his daughter Gianna, perished in the plane crash near Los Angeles.
Vanessa Bryant, his wife, filed a lawsuit against the city, claiming that emergency workers had taken pictures of the bodies as “souvenirs” to sell. LA County’s legal team deemed that a “fair and reasonable” settlement.
Lawyers for the plaintiff said in a statement on Tuesday (February 27, 2023)-
“Today marks the successful culmination of Mrs. Bryant’s courageous battle to hold accountable those who engaged in this grotesque conduct.”
“She fought for her husband, her daughter, and all those in the community whose deceased family were treated with similar disrespect. We hope her victory at trial and this settlement will end this practice.”
“We hope Ms Bryant and her children continue to heal from their loss.”
On Tuesday(February 27, 2023), attorneys said US media said that Chris Chester, whose wife and daughter also perished in the crash on January 26, 2020, had settled with the county for about $20 million. Mrs. Bryant named four sheriff’s deputies in March 2021, claiming they had handed out “gratuitous images of the murdered children, parents, and coaches” on their way to a basketball game.
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Photos of her daughter Gianna, then 13 years old, were taken and circulated “for no purpose other than morbid gossip,” she claimed. Mrs. Bryant testified at trial that she read about a sheriff’s deputy from Los Angeles County showing crash images at a bar.
She worries about it constantly: “I live in fear of my daughters being on social media and these popping up,” she told the court. Since then, California has enacted a rule making it illegal for first responders to photograph victims of accidents or crimes without permission.
The Sikorsky S-76B involved in the tragedy that took Bryant’s life crashed into a hillside outside Calabasas. At takeoff, visibility was low due to the fog, and police had already grounded their helicopters.
