On Wednesday evening, a jury sided with Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, in her lawsuit over photos taken at the crash site where her husband, daughter Gianna, and seven others were killed in the tragic helicopter accident in January 2020.
Photos were taken of human remains at the site and then shared by various members of the Los Angeles County firefighters and sheriff’s deputies.
In response, Vanessa Bryant sued the County departments, accusing them of negligence and of violating her constitutional right to privacy.
It was an emotional and grueling process, one in which authorities wanted Bryant to submit to a psychological examination. But the case finally went to trial in federal court.
After two weeks of testimony, the jury ultimately judged in favor of Bryant and Chris Chester, who joined her lawsuit.
Chester’s wife Sarah, and daughter, Payton were among those killed in the horrific crash.
The two plaintiffs were seeking damages for emotional distress caused by worrying that the photos shared by county employees might surface publically.
This evening the jury awarded Vanessa Bryant $16 million in damages and Chester $15 million.
The breakdown of Bryant’s award is as follows:
$2.5 million for past suffering and $7.5 million for future suffering (LA County Sheriff’s Department)
$1 million for past suffering and $5 million for future suffering (LA County Fire Department).
The lead attorney for LA County in the case, Mira Hashmall, said in a statement that they disagreed with the verdict and will discuss next steps.
“We will be discussing next steps with our client,” said Hashmall. “Meanwhile, we hope the Bryant and Chester families continue to heal from their tragic loss.”
An emotional Bryant, who put her head in her hands and cried when the verdict was read, and her legal team declined comment afterward.
Chris Chester’s lawyer, Jerry Jackson, expressed his gratitude to the jury and judge, “who gave us a very fair trial.”
