Vanessa Bryant has been very candid about her feelings of distress after emergency workers leaked photos of the devastating helicopter crash in which her husband and 13-year-old daughter passed away.
Within the contents of her lawsuit against Los Angeles County, she has claimed that she feels “tremendous pain and distress” after L.A. County Sherriff deputies photographed explicit material of the site and victims without permission, to which those photos were leaked to the public.
“Having lived in the public eye for 20 years and knowing the interest people have in my husband and family, I was extremely fearful that people would want to take photographs and footage of the crash site,” Bryant relayed in a statement, according to PEOPLE. “I have always been protective of my family’s privacy, especially my children, and it was important to me to protect their privacy and dignity.”
Despite the fact that she spoke with multiple personnel about ensuring the sight was to be secured, meaning no non-authorized individuals, the county went against her wishes and betrayed her trust.
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Bryant shared, “It infuriates me that the people I trusted to protect the dignity of my husband and daughter abused their positions to obtain souvenirs of their deaths, as though possessing pictures of their remains somehow makes them special.”
Vanessa Bryant is ‘sick’ at the actions of Los Angeles County employees.
“I feel sick at the thought that deputies and firefighters have gawked at photos of my husband’s and child’s bodies without any reason,” the 39-year-old mother additionally included. “I also feel extreme sadness and anger knowing that photos of my husband’s and daughter’s bodies were laughed about while shown at a bar and an awards banquet. Given how many people had the photos, I am confident these were not the only times the photos were shown off.”
Bryant went on to detail the disrespect and horror that county officials caused her during one of the worst moments of her life. “These deputies and firefighters took the worst thing that has ever happened to me — the worst thing that could happen to any mother or spouse — and made it worse,” she said.
However, representatives of Los Angeles County have argued that her claims do not warrant a lawsuit. Skip Miller, a lawyer for the California-based county, explained, “While the County sympathizes with Ms. Bryant’s tragic loss, it did not cause the crash that claimed the lives of her husband and child.”
“Rather, it responded to that crash and, at her specific request, set up a no-fly zone, undertook extensive efforts to keep the public and paparazzi away, and made sure none of the investigative photos were ever publicly disseminated. The County did its job and believes there is no merit to this lawsuit,” Miller included.
Bryant’s trial is set to begin in February 2022.
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