Today in California, the court process began in which the widow of the legendary basketball player Kobe Bryant, Vanessa Bryant, is suing the Los Angeles police.

Vanessa's lawyers revealed at the beginning of the trial that the police officers sent each other photos of the scene of the helicopter crash in which Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven other people lost their lives. The tragedy occurred on January 26, 2020 in the Calabasas area of ​​Los Angeles.

Vanessa Bryant's attorney, Lewis Lee, told jurors that firefighters and county sheriff's deputies shared photos from the scene of the crash with various people who had nothing to do with the crash and the investigation but, as the attorney said, "for a little laugh" and "virtual gossip".

– Sheriff's deputies shared the photos while playing video games. They shared the photos with people who had nothing to do with the case - said Vanessa Bryant's lawyer.

🏀 Kobe's wife, Vanessa Bryant, wants 30 million in damages in an invasion of privacy case🔐#NBA #Basketball pic.twitter.com/1BVFQzweZM

— AS USA (@English_AS) August 10

The lawyer of the police, on the other hand, in the opening words, emphasized that the taking of photographs of the accident site by the policemen and firefighters is necessary so that they can get information that could potentially save lives and the possible investigation.

- Photography is key - said lawyer J. Mira Hashmol.

But Vanessa Bryant's lawyer responded that the family was shaken and shocked that they did not get this information from the police and sheriffs, but from the media, specifically from the Los Angeles Times newspaper.

– January 26, 2020 was the worst day of Vanessa Bryant's life. Because of the police, her day got even worse. They put salt on an open wound and then "rubbed the area extra," Lee said.

Lee's attorney then showed the jury video footage of an off-duty Los Angeles sheriff's deputy drinking alcohol at a bar and showing a waiter photos.

ICYMI, today trial began for Vanessa Bryant's lawsuit against Los Angeles County over the misconduct of first responders who shared graphic photos of Kobe and Gigi following their tragic passings #MambaForever pic.twitter.com/yh5zwRr5K2

— Harvester Sports (@HarvesterSports) August 11

Then, firefighters were spotted at a party looking at photos together two weeks after the accident.

Lewis Lee presents evidence to the jury that up to 30 people obtained the photos of the accident scene, and none of them paid attention to ensure that the images did not end up in the public domain.
The police lawyer defended that the photos were not in the media or on the internet.

- The photos are not on the Internet, they are not even in the media. Not even the prosecutors have seen them. It did not happen by chance, but it is a proof of how much care was taken to work according to the procedures - Hashmol said.