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A distraught Vanessa Bryant sobbed and then walked out of a Los Angeles courtroom Thursday as a bartender described being shown grisly photos of her husband Kobe Bryant‘s remains after he and the couple’s 13-year-old daughter perished in a 2020 helicopter crash, according to reports.
Vanessa Bryant is suing Los Angeles County for invasion of privacy after first responders allegedly shared photos of the NBA star’s mangled corpse with nearly 30 people.
Bartender Victor Gutierrez told jurors in federal court that off-duty sheriff’s deputy Joey Cruz showed him the images at Baja California Bar & Grill, Law&Crime reported.
When he was asked about a photo of a girl’s body, Vanessa Bryant burst into tears and her attorney Luis LI asked the judge if she could be excused.
GRISLY PHOTOS OF KOBE BRYANT’S REMAINS SHARED FOR ‘GOSSIP’: LAWYERS
Vanessa and Kobe Bryant arrive at the Oscars in Los Angeles, March 4, 2018. Vanessa is suing Los Angeles County over photos deputies shared of her husband’s remains after he died in a 2020 helicopter crash.
(Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP, File)
U.S. District Judge John Walter told her that she did not have to ask for permission to leave.
It wasn’t clear if the reference to a “girl” referred to Vanessa and Kobe Bryant’s daughter, Gianna, who died in the Jan. 26 helicopter crash in Calabasas, California, alongside her father and seven others.
Gutierrez said that Cruz, a longtime friend, shared the images “to talk to somebody” about the disturbing carnage he had seen.
Li had argued in opening statements that surveillance video of their interaction showed the pair laughing shortly after Cruz displayed the gruesome images that included a shot of Kobe Bryant’s torso.
Vanessa Bryant, the widow of Kobe Bryant, leaves a federal courthouse in Los Angeles, Wednesday, Aug. 10, 2022.
(AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Gutierrez insisted that the two men hadn’t chuckled over the pictures because “that would be psycho,” according to the crime site.
The bartender’s testimony was followed by testimony from Ralph Mendez Jr. who witnessed their exchange and was so shocked by the alleged callousness that he filed a citizen’s complaint with the sheriff’s office.
VANESSA BRYANT LAWSUIT DETAILS HOW SHE DISCOVERED KOBE BRYANT AND DAUGHTER WERE DEAD
“I felt like I had to do the right thing,” he testified. He told jurors he saw Cruz eagerly show Gutierrez the photos then the duo allegedly laughed about them.
“I was in disbelief, disappointed, disgusted and angry,” Mendez testified. “Being in the position that he is, the deputy, I felt that he had the public’s trust riding on his shoulders.”
Former Los Angeles Laker Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna watch the U.S. national championships swimming meet in Irvine, Calif. Vanessa Bryant settled with the company that operated the helicopter involved in the deadly crash that killed him, her daughter and seven others.
(Chris Carlson/AP)
Vanessa Bryant learned about the privacy breach when she read an article in the Los Angeles Times, on Feb. 28, 2020, that has left her in fear the unauthorized photos will one day surface publicly, her lawyer said. Cruz wasn’t the only first responder to share the images.
Los Angeles County’s lawyer Mira Hashmall argued in opening statements that the first responders erred in showing the photographs to others but had a legitimate purpose in taking them.
Chris Chester, whose wife and daughter died in the crash, is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit that seeks unspecified damages in the millions.
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Kobe Bryant, an 18-time All-Star, and his daughter Gianna, along with the other passengers, were flying to a girls basketball tournament when the chartered helicopter crashed in the fog. He has three surviving daughters with Vanessa Bryant.
