Vanessa Bryant: A Jury Error Results In Kobe’s Widow Receiving $1 Million Less

Vanessa Bryant

Vanessa Bryant‘s $16 million verdict from a federal jury on Wednesday is expected to be reduced to $15 million as a result of an error that a juror found and reported to the court.

Bryant, the widow of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, won her civil case against Los Angeles County on Wednesday after the nine-person jury unanimously determined that the county was responsible for damages suffered by both her and Chris Chester, another plaintiff who was given a $15 million award by the same jury.

U.S. District Judge John F. Walter stated in court on Friday that “it was the objective of the nine jurors that both plaintiffs Vanessa Bryant and Christopher Chester be compensated equally.”

Bryant has approved this modification. Bryant believed that getting the same sum as Chester was a “fair” conclusion, according to her attorney Luis Li, who testified on her behalf in court on Friday. After filing lawsuits against the county many months after they each lost wives and daughters in a helicopter crash in January 2020, both had brought their cases to trial.

Their cases focused on what transpired after the incident, not the crash itself. They claimed that county deputies and firefighters shared and displayed graphic images of the wreckage from their loved ones who had passed away without having a good reason to do so.

The jury determined that their constitutional rights had been violated after an 11-day trial. However, one of the jurors pointed out to the courtroom deputy that Bryant’s name was misprinted on the verdict form after the verdict was announced in court.

Bryant should receive $1.5 million from the sheriff’s office for prior emotional suffering, not $2.5 million, according to the jury’s verdict. She was also given $13.5 million in additional damages for emotional distress by the jury. Each will receive a $15 million compensation due to the jury’s revised decision.

I made a comment in response to a question concerning the modified jury award from Friday.

Mrs. Bryant has just sought accountability throughout this process, Li added. She has put her trust in the jury to accomplish justice and has never requested a specific monetary amount.

Given Bryant’s decision to take $1 million less in emotional stress damages against the sheriff’s department, Walter claimed it was unnecessary to call the jury back.

According to Li, Bryant wants her prize to support the Mamba and Mambacita charity in memory of Kobe and Gianna.

Vanessa Bryant has only ever sought accountability, but our legal system does not allow her to compel better procedures, greater officer training, or other forms of officer reprimand, Li said in a statement on Thursday. The Sheriff’s and Fire Departments are in charge of those measures, and Mrs. Bryant’s efforts have revealed that they are terribly inadequate and even provide the wrongdoer’s amnesty.

The county pointed out that the pictures were deleted soon after the accident and were never uploaded online.

Bryant hopes that “this major civil rights litigation will put an end to this abominable and cruel behavior,” according to Li.

FAQs

What amount did Vanessa Bryant request?

Vanessa Bryant’s lawsuit against the NBA star Kobe Bryant was awarded $16 million by a jury. The sharing of images of the skeletal remains from the helicopter crash that claimed the lives of Ms. Bryant’s husband, daughter, and seven other people led to her filing a lawsuit against Los Angeles County. Another plaintiff received $15 million.

Vanessa Bryant is she a Mexican?

On May 5, 1982, in Los Angeles, California, Bryant was born. She has Mexican ancestry. She was a baby when her parents got divorced. Her biological father relocated to Baja California following her parents’ divorce.

Who was Vanessa Bryant’s attorney?

At one time, Vanessa Bryant exited the courtroom.
It is an honor to stand here and ask for justice and accountability on behalf of the Bryants, said Kobe Bryant’s attorney Craig Lavoie as he opened his closing statement on the occasion of his 44th birthday.

What was Vanessa Bryant’s victory?

16.3 million
After a civil lawsuit that went into vivid detail about horrifying pictures that were shot and shared from the scene of a helicopter crash, a federal jury gave Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa, $16 million.