(CNN) Vanessa Bryant has reached a nearly $29 million agreement with Los Angeles County to settle a lawsuit over photographs taken in a helicopter crash that killed her husband, Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant, her daughter Gianna Bryant, and seven others.
The settlement caps several years of lawsuits related to the January 2020 helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, and the hillside and photos that circulated in the aftermath.
“Today marks the successful culmination of Ms. Bryant’s courageous fight to hold accountable those who engaged in this heinous behavior,” Louis Lee, the attorney representing Bryant, said in a statement to CNN. “She fought for her husband, her daughter and everyone in the community whose deceased family was treated with the same disrespect. We hope she wins the trial and this settlement will put an end to this practice.”
The settlement follows a federal jury in August 2022 Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office and Fire Department officials found it For violating the constitutional rights of Bryant and co-plaintiff Christopher Chester to take and share horrific photos of the helicopter crash that left nine people dead.
The photos included not only the wreckage of the helicopter, but close-ups of the mutilated bodies of the dead.
Bryant and Chester argued that the photos of their loved ones caused emotional distress and violated their privacy. all saw to live in fear The photos may appear, despite the county’s assurances that the photos have been destroyed.
The jury awarded Chester $15 million in damages and Bryant $16 million, which was later reduced to $15 million due to a clerical error, according to Bryant’s attorney.
The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors agreed in September 2022 to pay Chester an additional $4.95 million, who lost his wife, Sarah, and 13-year-old daughter, Payton in a helicopter crash.
Los Angeles County lead trial attorney Mira Hashmul called the latest settlement with Bryant “fair and reasonable.”
The $28,850,000 settlement includes the August 2022 federal jury verdict, and also resolves all outstanding issues related to legal claims pending in state court, future claims by the Bryant children, and other costs, with each party responsible for the attorneys involved. Hashmul said in the “fee” statement.
Bianca Bella Bryant and Capri Kobe Bryant, the youngest daughters of the Bryant family, are named in the lawsuit along with their mother.
“We hope that Ms. Bryant and her children will continue to recover from their loss,” Hashmul added.
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