Vanessa Bryant, widow of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, broke down at times on Friday when she testified that she was experiencing panic attacks and fear at the possibility of seeing photos of the 2020 helicopter crash that involved her husband, teenage daughter and seven others people died.
On the witness stand in her federal lawsuit against Los Angeles County, Vanessa Bryant recalled being at home with her family and breastfeeding her 7-month-old daughter Capri when she learned of a Los Angeles Times report about the County Sheriff’s Deputies who the graphic photos shared .
“I just remember not wanting to react because the girls were in the room,” she testified, her voice rising with emotion. “I said, ‘I can’t do this.’ …And I stormed out of the house and ran to the side of the house so the girls couldn’t see me.I wanted to run…down the block and just scream.I can’t escape my body.I can do what I can feel, not escape.”
Along with Chris Chester, whose wife and daughter were also killed in the crash, Bryant filed a federal civil suit alleging that Los Angeles County had invaded their privacy and caused emotional distress by distributing the photos, which according to witnesses were not shown, not properly contained only helicopter wreckage, but the tattered bodies of the victims.
Bryant admitted to being nervous on the witness stand and cried while speaking about their late daughter Gianna. She had to pull herself together as she described the day it had taken to find Gianna’s body in the rubble. She sobbed as she recalled searching a secure NTSB website for the victims’ clothing and other personal belongings.
Bryant recounted her interaction after the crash with Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva, who informed her that her husband and daughter had been killed. She sometimes broke down when she recalled the events.
“I’m sorry, Mrs Bryant. Is there anything I can do for you?” Bryant recalled Villanueva asking.
“If you cannot bring my babies back, please secure the area. I’m worried about paparazzi,” she recalled telling him.
The sheriff assured her he would, but he stayed in the room, Bryant said. She told him to leave and process her request immediately.
According to Bryant, Villanueva got out and returned, telling her he had obtained a temporary flight restriction to the area through the US Federal Aviation Administration.
Bryant testified that she had to remove comments from her Instagram feed after the images circulated. Her attorney, Luis Li, showed a comment sent to her shortly after the LA Times story was published.
“I’m going to lick Kobe’s corpse,” the message read, which included helicopter and fire emojis.
Defense attorneys have indicated in court filings that they plan to address Bryant’s own Instagram posts, including one from Halloween in which she is dressed up as Cruella de Vil, a villain portrayed in Disney films.
“They say there are five stages of grief: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. Well, I’d like to add one more thing… revenge. – Cruella,” reads the caption.
Li asked Bryant about the post. She testified that the choice of costume was consistent with other Halloween outfits she had worn, including the Wicked Witch from The Wizard of Oz and Darth Vader.
Bryant said she dresses up as the bad guys so her girls could be the good guys.
The sheriff testifies that he developed a “bargain” to ensure photos are deleted
During cross-examination, the defense attempted to show that Bryant had other sources of stress besides the photo controversy, including a lawsuit her mother had filed against her. Bryant testified that her mother “thought she was entitled to money.”
Defense attorney Mira Hashmall told Bryant that her mother “accused her of cheating… elder abuse, that must have been stressful.”
“It was definitely hurtful,” Bryant said, adding that she also felt betrayed.
“I’m sure that was stressful,” Hashmall asked.
“Yeah, it wasn’t easy,” Bryant replied, adding that the lawsuit was settled and didn’t cause the kind of lingering fear she has before the photos from the accident scene surfaced.
“It was stressful at the time, but my mother gave birth to me. she raised me And like I said, it’s been resolved,” Bryant said of the lawsuit.
The defense pressed Bryant on whether their goal was for the photos to never be seen — which LA County claims its actions achieved.
“I wish someone could find all the photos and examine who shared what,” Bryant said.
The defense’s first witness, Sheriff Villanueva, testified that the handling of the leaked photos must be expedient. He said opening a formal investigation would invoke union rules, involving lawyers and delays, and could provide more avenues for the photos to be distributed.
“There’s a way we’re going to get them right away,” Villanueva said, referring to the accident scene, so he made up what he called a “bargain.”
MPs involved in the leak would prove the photos were deleted and receive a note of their behavior in a performance record, Villanueva testified.
The plaintiffs’ attorneys sought to show that the handling of the incident prevented Internal Affairs from later conducting an investigation into the alleged wrongdoing.
“You can’t take responsibility and (also) risk the photos getting out,” Villanueva testified. “And we picked the right one.”
Bryant had previously testified that she lives in fear because a formal investigation could not confirm that all photos of the crash site were captured and destroyed.
LAW STAFF DESCRIBED HOW THEY SHARE PHOTOS
The trial has so far seen testimony from several law enforcement officials, including one MP who testified he had shown graphic images of the scene at a bar, another MP who said he shared photos while playing a video game, one MP , who sent dozens of photos to someone he didn’t know, and to a firefighter who showed the photos to other employees during a cocktail hour at the awards ceremony.
Chester, who filed the lawsuit alongside Bryant, testified Thursday and said he lives in fear that the graphic photos taken of his loved ones’ bodies could one day surface again.
Chester took the witness stand after several days of law enforcement officials giving evidence – some of whom apologized, explaining the graphic nature of the photos and explaining why they were taken and shared and why orders were given to delete them.
Bryant was in the courtroom and heard testimonies from all witnesses except the coroner. She left the courtroom abruptly when a bartender said he saw photos.
Villanueva is expected to be followed on the stand by LA County Fire Chief Anthony Marrone.
Kobe Bryant, 41, and Gianna Bryant, 13, were among the nine people killed in the January 26, 2020 hilltop helicopter crash in Calabasas, California.
They were flying to a girls basketball game at Bryant’s Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks when the helicopter crashed, leaving no survivors.