Vanessa Bryant, the wife of late Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, was recently awarded a judgement worth $16 million after she won her lawsuit against Los Angeles County after first-responders that reported to the helicopter crash that took the life of Kobe and 8 others shared pictures of Kobe and Gianna Bryant’s bodies within personal channels.
The trial for the case was relatively straightforward in terms of how the jury reconvened relatively quickly to announce a judgment in favor of Vanessa. She broke down into tears during the proceedings while recalling the situation. A portion of the judgment amount received by Vanessa will be donated to the ‘Mamba and Mambacita Foundation’ that was started in the memory of Kobe and Gigi.
“From the beginning, Vanessa Bryant has sought only accountability, but our legal system does not permit her to force better policies, more training or officer discipline,” her attorney Luis Li said in a statement. “Those measures are the responsibility of the sheriff’s and fire departments — responsibilities that Mrs. Bryant’s efforts have exposed as woefully deficient, even giving amnesty to the wrongdoers.” (h/t TMZ)
REPORT: Vanessa Bryant will be donating the $16 million she was awarded from the LA County lawsuit to the Mamba & Mambacita Foundation.
(via @TMZ, https://t.co/pnNueZJX9d) pic.twitter.com/3vsBASzREU
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) August 26, 2022
This was a brutal ordeal for Vanessa, as revealed through her testimonies in court. Here is an excerpt of her emotional testimony.
“I felt like I wanted to run down the block and scream,” she said in the courtroom. “I can’t escape my body. I can’t escape what I feel… I trusted them. I trusted them to not do these things.”
After saying that the sheriffs that took the pictures probably had to move Kobe’s body off Gianna’s to get pictures of her, Vanessa said, “They took advantage that Daddy couldn’t protect her. He was at the morgue.”
“I don’t ever want to see my babies in that way,” she said, explaining to the courtroom that she lives in constant fear that the photos could surface. “Nobody should ever have to see their family in that way.” (h/t TMZ)
Vanessa can finally start to move on from this situation and hope that those pictures are never leaked onto the internet, where they will live forever and be a harrowing reminder to her and her kids about what they lost on January 26, 2020.
The donation will go a long way in helping further memorialize Kobe and Gianna, as their family continues to help the community in their honor.
