Vanessa Bryant Reacts to Leaked Photos of Kobe Bryant Crash: 'It Is Inexcusable and Deplorable'

Julie Sprankles
·7 min read

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The response from Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, over leaked helicopter crash photos by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and Fire Department is precisely what you might expect — she’s “devastated,” and she isn’t taking the “unspeakable violation” lightly. On Sunday, Vanessa’s legal team released a statement on her behalf making it very clear she feels that anyone who would participate in such behavior lacks the integrity expected and required from first responders.

Reports began circulating last week that L.A. County deputies and firefighters had shared graphic photos of the scene of the tragic helicopter crash that claimed the lives of Kobe, his and Vanessa’s 13-year-old daughter Gianna Bryant and seven others. Per the Los Angeles Times, two public safety sources confirmed that first responders on the scene had engaged in both discussing such sensitive topics as the victims’ remains and exchanging photos from the crash site.

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In a statement shared on social media, Vanessa’s attorneys underscored that she was extremely upset over the gross violation of trust, saying, “Our client, Vanessa Bryant, is absolutely devastated by allegations that deputies from the Lost Hills Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and Los Angeles County Fire Department publicly disseminated photos from the helicopter crash site.”

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CORRECTED: The department at issue is the Los Angeles County Fire Dept (LACoFD) NOT the LAFD KANSAS CITY, Mo.–(repost: BUSINESS WIRE)–Statement From Gary C. Robb, Legal Counsel on Behalf of His Client, Vanessa Bryant: Our client, Vanessa Bryant, is absolutely devastated by allegations that deputies from the Lost Hills Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and Los Angeles County Fire Department publicly disseminated photos from the helicopter crash site. Mrs. Bryant personally went to the Sheriff’s office on January 26th and requested that the area be designated a no-fly zone and protected from photographers. This was of critical importance to her as she desired to protect the dignity of all the victims, and their families. At that time, Sheriff Alex Villanueva assured us all measures would be put in place to protect the families’ privacy, and it is our understanding that he has worked hard to honor those requests. First responders should be trustworthy. It is inexcusable and deplorable that some deputies from the Lost Hills Sheriff’s substation, other surrounding substations and LACOFD would allegedly breach their duty. This is an unspeakable violation of human decency, respect, and of the privacy rights of the victims and their families. We are demanding that those responsible for these alleged actions face the harshest possible discipline, and that their identities be brought to light, to ensure that the photos are not further disseminated. We are requesting an Internal Affairs investigation of these alleged incidents. Mrs. Bryant is grateful to the individual who filed an online complaint exposing these acts of injustice, and for the choice to protect human dignity. We ask that anyone else who has information as to the facts underlying these alleged grievous and shameful incidents contact our office at 816–474-8080 or email via www.robbrobb.com

A post shared by Vanessa Bryant 🦋 (@vanessabryant) on Mar 1, 2020 at 8:22am PST

They went on to explain that Vanessa personally went to the Sheriff’s office on the day of the crash to request the area be restricted immediately so as to protect it from photographers and other prying eyes. Said her legal team, “This was of critical importance to her as she desired to protect the dignity of all the victims, and their families.”

At the time, Vanessa and counsel felt confident in Sheriff Alex Villanueva’s reassurances that protective measures would be put into place (and they acknowledge that, to their understanding, he has “worked hard to honor those requests”). Still, the photos were allegedly leak — a fact brought to Vanessa’s attention by an individual who filed an online complaint to expose the unjust behavior and “protect human dignity.”

Understandably, Vanessa is disappointed and shaken by the actions of those who decided to share photos from the helicopter crash site. “First responders should be trustworthy. It is inexcusable and deplorable that some deputies from the Lost Hills Sheriff’s substation, other surrounding substations and LACOFD, would allegedly breach their duty. This is an unspeakable violation of human decency, respect, and of the privacy rights of the victims and their families,” she said.

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My girls and I want to thank the millions of people who’ve shown support and love during this horrific time. Thank you for all the prayers. We definitely need them. We are completely devastated by the sudden loss of my adoring husband, Kobe — the amazing father of our children; and my beautiful, sweet Gianna — a loving, thoughtful, and wonderful daughter, and amazing sister to Natalia, Bianka, and Capri. We are also devastated for the families who lost their loved ones on Sunday, and we share in their grief intimately. There aren’t enough words to describe our pain right now. I take comfort in knowing that Kobe and Gigi both knew that they were so deeply loved. We were so incredibly blessed to have them in our lives. I wish they were here with us forever. They were our beautiful blessings taken from us too soon. I’m not sure what our lives hold beyond today, and it’s impossible to imagine life without them. But we wake up each day, trying to keep pushing because Kobe, and our baby girl, Gigi, are shining on us to light the way. Our love for them is endless — and that’s to say, immeasurable. I just wish I could hug them, kiss them and bless them. Have them here with us, forever. Thank you for sharing your joy, your grief and your support with us. We ask that you grant us the respect and privacy we will need to navigate this new reality. To honor our Team Mamba family, the Mamba Sports Foundation has set up the MambaOnThree Fund to help support the other families affected by this tragedy. To donate, please go to MambaOnThree.org. To further Kobe and Gianna’s legacy in youth sports, please visit MambaSportsFoundation.org. Thank you so much for lifting us up in your prayers, and for loving Kobe, Gigi, Natalia, Bianka, Capri and me. #Mamba #Mambacita #GirlsDad #DaddysGirls #Family ❤️

A post shared by Vanessa Bryant 🦋 (@vanessabryant) on Jan 29, 2020 at 4:59pm PST

She continued, demanding punitive measures be taken to ensure such a violation of respect and breach of morality doesn’t hurt any other families the way it is currently causing her and the families of the other crash victims’ pain.

“We are demanding that those responsible for these alleged actions face the harshest possible discipline and that their identities be brought to light, to ensure that the photos are not further disseminated,” Vanessa’s legal team said on her behalf in the statement. “We are requesting an Internal Affairs investigation of these alleged incidents.”

As of right now, the Sheriff’s Department has reportedly already launched an investigation. “Hopefully we’ll hear more, what was going on and how they found out,” Patti Giggans, chair of the Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission, told the Times about the “completely unprofessional” and “very regrettable” behavior. “At this point, we have to trust that the sheriff is going to get to the bottom of it.”

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