The widow of former US basketball pro Kobe Bryant, who died in a helicopter crash, has been awarded damages in the process for photos from the accident site. A Los Angeles jury awarded Vanessa Bryant $16 million for inappropriately disseminating images of human remains from the crash, multiple US media outlets have reported.
The then 41-year-old Bryant, a former Los Angeles Lakers player, and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna and seven other people died in a helicopter crash near Los Angeles in January 2020. They had been on their way to a girls’ basketball tournament.
Bryant’s widow had filed the lawsuit against the district of Los Angeles County because, in their opinion, employees of the district sheriff’s office and the fire department had taken photos of the victims at the scene of the accident without official reason and then shown them to bystanders – for example in bars. In addition to Vanessa Bryant, another relative had complained, who was also awarded a sum of millions. Survivors of other victims of the crash had complained separately.