U.S. News
Lawyer accuses L.A. deputies of sharing Kobe Bryant crash photos “for a laugh” [Video]
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- Vanessa Bryant’s lawyer accused Los Angeles County officials of institutional “culture of callousness” by sharing photos of Kobe Bryant’s remains.
- The lawyer for Kobe’s widow told jurors that the photos shot at the crash scene were used for “visual gossip” and shared “for a laugh.”
- Vanessa’s lawyer said the deputies “poured salt in an open wound and rubbed it in.”
Vanessa Bryant’s lawyer accused Los Angeles County deputies and firefighters of institutional “culture of callousness” after taking and sharing photos of the remains of Kobe Bryant and other victims of the 2020 helicopter crash. The tragic accident killed the NBA superstar, his 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven others.
In his opening statement, Attorney Luis Li told jurors that the cell phone photos shot at the crash scene by a deputy and a fire captain were “visual gossip” shared “for a laugh.”
“They were shared by deputies playing video games,” Li said in U.S. District Court. “They were shared repeatedly with people who had absolutely no reason to receive them.”
Kobe’s widow is suing the county for invading her privacy. She was frequently in tears during her lawyer’s presentation.
County lawyer J. Mira Hashmall defended the taking of the photos, saying “site photography is essential.” Hashmall added that first-responders seek to share information when they believed they might still save lives at the crash scene in the Calabasas hills.
Li told jurors that Vanessa learned about the photos’ circulation, not from the county but the Los Angeles Times, a month after the deadly crash.
“January 26th, 2020, was the worst day of Vanessa Bryant’s life. The county made it much worse,” Li said. “They poured salt in an open wound and rubbed it in.”
Li showed jurors security video of an off-duty sheriff’s deputy drinking at a bar and showing the photos to the bartender, who shakes his head in dismay. The lawyer also presented a photo of the men laughing together later. Li described firefighters looking at the phone photos two weeks later at an awards banquet, and showed the jury an animated chart documenting their spread to nearly 30 individuals.
Hashmall suggested that the video Li showed was deceptively edited to show the men laughing together.
Li said the county has not conducted a thorough investigation to ensure every copy of the photo was accounted for. Vanessa Bryant, who feared that they will someday surface, and her surviving children may chance upon them online, “will be haunted by what they did forever.”
Hashmall, during the defense’s opening statement, told jurors that since the pictures have not appeared in more than two years showed that leaders in the sheriff’s and fire department did their jobs.
“They’re not online. They’re not in the media. They’ve never even been seen by the plaintiffs themselves,” Hashmall said. She added, “That is not an accident. That is a function of how diligent they were.”
Chris Chester, who is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit, lost his wife, Sara, and daughter Payton in the crash.
The county already settled $2.5 million in a similar case brought by two families whose relatives died in the 2020 crash. Vanessa Bryant and Chester, however, refused to settle.
Source: New York Post
Mike Tracy
August 15, 2022 at 6:57 am
It’s like these bryant idiots are blaming this crash on the emergency responders.
Responders take pictures!
So what!
The Responders didn’t cause the crash!
The pilot or mechanical failure or adverse conditions cause helicopter and plane crashes.
Responders come to pick up the pieces, they take pictures, and they talk about the incident. SO WHAT!
If you don’t want to be talked about, don’t crash!
Michael
August 15, 2022 at 12:37 pm
It what they shouldn’t be doing is taking PERSONAL photos on their PERSONAL cameras, for their own PERSONAL interests. That is breech of trust and not only that- it’s just plain wrong! Some morbid curiousity because he’s famous is wrong.
Fireman
August 15, 2022 at 7:10 am
The big scene of a crash of any kind is not your privacy!. You made a mess! It’s got to be cleaned up! Responders take pictures! Just because a responder may laugh about something while they are at a scene or later at the bar, doesn’t necessarily mean they are laughing to be disrespectful. And even if they were, it is still not an invasion of privacy! A wreck or a crash is public information as soon as responders are called to the scene!
Michael
August 15, 2022 at 12:42 pm
It’s called RESPECT. Something that this world is sorely lacking. As an emergency PROFESSIONAL, I would hope you understand that.
It what they shouldn’t be doing is taking PERSONAL photos on their PERSONAL cameras, for their own PERSONAL interests. That is breech of trust and not only that- it’s just plain wrong! Some morbid curiousity because he’s famous is wrong.
At the same time, I am sure that tragic fatal accidents remove peoples clothes due to the horrific accident in a car or motorcycle. What are you going to do then- take photos because the dead woman’s breasts or vagina is exposed as the crash tore her clothes off? Better not on your personal devices.
Fireman
August 15, 2022 at 12:58 pm
We aren’t talking about perverted photography, Michael, merely the scene of the accident. So don’t be stupid.
Uncle Art
August 15, 2022 at 8:31 am
Hey we can get more money right?? How about soldiers in war that got killed and there’s photos of it and news outlets use them for ratings or used in a book written by someone or used by government as history lesson etc.. Or is it they and their family have no rights to privacy or monies because they got paid to be killed with Tax Payers Money
Fireman
August 15, 2022 at 2:05 pm
Vanessa’s lawyer is twisting facts. That’s what crooked lawyers do to win a case. That’s also why I take pictures of accidents that I’m called out on. If there are no disputes of what really happened, or how it happened, or drugs involved, or incriminating evidence that I might see at a scene , ect, ect, after a few months all the photos of that scene are deleted. Just because Vanessa’s grief has destroyed her life doesn’t mean all the first responders on the scene have to grieve with her, but since they’re not all grieveing, her and her lawyer cook up some lies and sue them. This whole story is biased and told by a crooked lawyer with a scheme to sue a department with money.
Sometimes, the Sherriffs department doesn’t get a photo of something that may be very pertinent to an accident, and people want to sue the department for some stupid reason. That’s where other photos taken by first responding personnel can confirm or contradict a plaintiffs suit.
I see bullshit twisted facts written all over this lawsuit.