Vanessa Bryant Wins Nearly $30 Million In Final Settlement Over Kobe, Gianna Helicopter Crash Photos
Kobe’s widow was originally awarded $15 million for leaked photos of her husband, Kobe, and daughter Gianna at the crash site.
After winning $15 million in August for alleged leaked photos of her late husband Kobe Bryant and 13-year-old daughter, Gianna Bryant at the helicopter crash site that killed them, Vanessa Bryant has just scored another victory. Per People, she reached a $28.5 million total settlement in the matter from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors. Kobe and Gianna perished in a tragic helicopter crash in January of 2020. “Today marks the successful culmination of Mrs. Bryant’s courageous battle to hold accountable those who engaged in this grotesque conduct,” Vanessa’s lawyer Luis Li told the outlet in a statement.
“She fought for her husband, her daughter, and all those in the community whose deceased family were treated with similar disrespect. We hope her victory at trial and this settlement will put an end to this practice.”
Along with the NBA legend and his daughter, seven other passengers on the ill-fated January 26, 2020, flight perished. They were John Altobelli, 56, his wife Keri, 46, and their daughter, Alyssa, 13; Sarah Chester, 45, and daughter Payton, 13; pilot Ara Zobayan, 50; and assistant coach Christina Mauser, 38.
![The retirement of the Los Angeles Lakers player, Kobe Bryant's #8 and #24 jerseys was held Monday December 18, 2017 in Los Angeles, California during half time of the game between with the Golden State Warriors. Kobe Bryant with his family (L-R) Gianna Maria-Onore, wife, Vanessa Laine Bryant, Kobe Bryant holding Bianka Bella and Natalia Diamante. 18 Dec 2017 Pictured: The retirement of the Los Angeles Lakers player, Kobe Bryant's #8 and #24 jerseys was held Monday December 18, 2017 in Los Angeles, California during half time of the game between with the Golden State Warriors. Kobe Bryant with his family (L-R) Gianna Maria-Onore, wife, Vanessa Laine Bryant, Kobe Bryant holding Bianka Bella and Natalia Diamante. Photo credit: ZUMAPRESS.com / MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA135063_001.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]](https://hollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/kobe-bryant-family-photo-mega.jpg?fit=320%2C238&resize=320%2C238)
![Kobe Bryant and daughter Gianna who tragically died in a helicopter crash seen for the last time on Saturday at the Kobe's Mamba Sports Academy in Thousand Oaks. 25 Jan 2020 Pictured: Kobe Bryant and Gianna. Photo credit: RMG News/MEGA TheMegaAgency.com +1 888 505 6342 (Mega Agency TagID: MEGA594919_001.jpg) [Photo via Mega Agency]](https://hollywoodlife.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/kobe-bryant-gianna-final-photos-mega2.jpg?fit=180%2C240&resize=180%2C240)
Vanessa previously testified about the trauma caused by the leaked photos allegedly taken by “no fewer than eight sheriff’s deputies,” whom she claimed, “at the crash site pulled out their personal cell phones and snapped photos of the dead children, parents, and coaches.” She also accused the L.A. Sherriff’s Deputies involved of “severe emotional distress” over the alleged impropriety.
“I just remember not wanting to react cause the girls were in the room,” the mom of three testified on August 19, 2022 about learning of the photos. “I said, ‘I can’t do this.’… And I bolted out of the house, and I 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’t escape what I feel. … I was blindsided again, devastated, hurt. I trusted them. I trusted them not to do these things.”