Kobe Bryant’s widow told a court on Friday that she was devastated when she learned that rescuers had taken photos of the crash site of the helicopter in which her husband, daughter and seven others found the dead.
Very moved, Vanessa Bryant said she lived in fear that these photos would emerge online.
“It’s like COVID-19. Once it spreads, there’s no stopping it. »
Basketball superstar Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven others died in a helicopter crash on January 26, 2020, west of Los Angeles, California.
Vanessa Bryant says she suffered emotional distress when Los Angeles County police and firefighters photographed the crash site and victims before sharing the snaps with others.
She is claiming damages from Los Angeles County for an exact amount that has not been disclosed.
His complaint was associated with that of Chris Chester, whose wife and thirteen-year-old daughter also perished in the accident.
Los Angeles County attorneys do not dispute that the photos were taken, but say they were never made public and have since been deleted.
“I had protected my family from the details”
At the helm on Thursday, Chris Chester expressed his disbelief upon learning of the existence of these photos. “I had protected my family from the details” of the crush, he said.
“And there, I thought to myself that there would be photos of the remains” on the Internet, he recalled, explaining that he had asked his sons not to look for them on the web.
Mira Hashmall, a Los Angeles County attorney, said authorities “worked tirelessly to keep these crash site photos out of the public domain.”
“More than two and a half years later, no photos of the county have appeared in the media, none can be found online, and the plaintiffs admit they have never seen them. »
Other families of victims were awarded $2.5 million in compensation last year in the same case.
An investigation had concluded that the pilot of the helicopter was responsible for the accident, an “error in judgement” having led to his “disorientation” in the middle of thick fog.
The death at 41 of Kobe Bryant, emblematic player of the Los Angeles Lakers and considered one of the best basketball players in the history of this sport, had caused great emotion around the world.