A federal jury has found that the county of Los Angeles must pay Vanessa Bryant, the widow to NBA player and Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant, a sum of $16 million, as reported by the Los Angeles Times. Vanessa Bryant’s case concerned photographs of the remains of Kobe and their 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, which circulated after the two died in a 2020 helicopter crash.
The jury’s unanimous decision was announced on Wednesday afternoon, one day after what would’ve been Kobe Bryant’s 44th birthday.
In addition to Vanessa Bryant’s legal victory, her co-plaintiff, Chris Chester, whose wife and daughter were among the nine people killed in the helicopter crash, was awarded $15 million.
Photographs of Kobe and Gianna Bryant were shared between employees of the Los Angeles County sheriff’s and fire departments, reaching the spouses of some employees and, in one case, a bartender.
More to come…
