Kobe Bryant's Family Wins $16Mln in Suit Over Leak of Helicopter Crash Photos, Reports Say
© AP Photo / Mark J. Terrill
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MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Kobe Bryant's widow, Vanessa, received $16 million after winning the lawsuit against Los Angeles County over the sharing of photos showing the scene of the helicopter crash that killed her husband and 13-year old daughter, the ESPN broadcaster reported on Thursday.
The late basketball star, his daughter Gianna and seven others were on their way to a girls basketball tournament but died in the crash after their helicopter flew into a hill in Los Angeles during poor weather conditions on January 26, 2020.
On August 10, Vanessa Bryant filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles County sheriff and fire departments, whose employees leaked the photos of the tragedy. The widow sought damages over emotional damage, negligence, privacy and civil rights violations.
FILE - In this Jan. 27, 2020, file photo, released by the National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB investigator Carol Hogan examines wreckage as part of the NTSB's investigation of a helicopter crash near Calabasas, Calif., that killed former NBA basketball player Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and seven others. Federal safety investigators bypassed aviation regulators on Tuesday, June 2, 2020, and urged leading helicopter manufacturers to install so-called black boxes that would help determine the cause of crashes such as the one that killed former NBA star Kobe Bryant.
© AP Photo / James Anderson/National Transportation Safety Board via AP
After the 11-day trial the jurors unanimously agreed that the publication of photos invaded the privacy of the family of the victims. Vanessa was awarded $16 million in compensation in a $31 million verdict, and the other part of compensation was received by her co-plaintiff, Chris Chester, who also lost his wife and daughter in the tragedy.
Kobe Bryant, who retired in 2016, won five National Basketball Association championships during his games with the Los Angeles Lakers, with whom he spent his entire 20-year career.
