A federal jury in California has awarded $31 million in damages to Vanessa Bryant and Chris Chester, whose spouses and children were killed in a 2020 helicopter crash, after Los Angeles County emergency personnel shared photos of their dead bodies.
The jury returned their unanimous verdict after four-and-a-half hours of deliberation. The nine jurors agreed that the photos of NBA star Kobe Bryant, his 13-year-old daughter, and other crash victims brought the co-plaintiffs emotional distress and invaded their privacy.
Bryant was awarded $16 million and Chester was awarded $15 million. Bryant’s attorneys did not specify a dollar amount that they thought their client deserved, but Chester’s attorney suggested guidelines that would have meant tens of millions for each plaintiff, The Associated Press reported….