Vanessa Bryant’s lawsuit against Los Angeles County — which centers on first responders who allegedly distributed photos of her husband Kobe and the site of her daughter Gianna’s 2020 helicopter crash — faced several delays in the initial stages. The early days of the pandemic apparently postponed several trial dates, including, the mount of preliminary evidence presented by Vanessa’s legal team (who was reprimanded for sharing so much) and the defense had to be analyzed later. But they’re finally in front of a jury now. In the latest trial development, the waiter’s witness addressed the claim that he laughed when he was shown the pictures.
TMZ Reports that Victor Gutierrez confirmed in court on August 12 that Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Representative Joey Cruz offered to show him footage of the crash site at the Baha Grill in Los Angeles where Gutierrez works. Apparently, he and other staff there, as well as some passers-by in the pub, saw the horrific photos that were said to have included the remains of the nine victims. Nevertheless, the waiter testified that the actions of the deputy were not malicious, from his point of view, but only to relieve some of the burden of what he saw.
Kobe Bryant’s widow’s lawyer retracted their questioning of the witness. In particular, they asked if Victor Gutierrez found the photos funny at the time. He denied it, but then a surveillance video was shown in Gutierrez’s court, laughing at the moment. He again denied the insinuations, adding that anyone who found the humor in those photos would be “psychotic”.
The reason the tape scenario has appeared in court is that Vanessa Bryant claims that the circulation of crash site photos by county officials violated her right to privacy, with regard to photos of her deceased loved ones. What’s more, it has been stated that the possibility of these gruesome images that have become publicly available via her online feed at any time without her consent is causing emotional turmoil for Bryant.
The satirical posts on social media are in fact the crux of the lawsuit in question. The judge had ruled before trial that some of the messages Vanessa Bryant received online in the aftermath of the incident were “relevant, admittedly as sarcasm”, and thus possible evidence of emotional distress. Some, though, were deemed inadmissible to trial because Bryant had received them before it became known that Los Angeles County respondents had circulated anything—thus, making them largely “rumours” in the case. However, a letter threatening to “leak Kobe’s body” and a post with an aerial shot (presumably from the province) are among those that were taken as evidence.
When the trial first began on August 11, according to the outlet, the plaintiff’s legal team (which now includes an expert from the trial of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard) made opening statements fully identifying the eight deputies who took selfies of the dead. They say the photos were posted by respondents at the awards show, shared with a woman in a bar, and scattered among their family members. As a result, Kobe Bryant’s wife was seen crying in public in court that day.
It’s only been two days so far in what is expected to be a 10-day experience, but it’s clear that it will be an emotional affair for those close to the former NBA legend, who was recently honored at the ESPY Awards by Klay Thompson. More updates on the issue are sure to arrive sooner rather than later.
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