Vanessa Bryant speaks out after Kobe crash photos verdict

An emotional Vanessa Bryant has spoken out after being awarded $16 million in her trial against Los Angeles County.

On Wednesday, a federal jury gave their verdict after first responders snapped and shared grisly photos of the fatal 2020 helicopter crash that killed Vanessa’s husband Kobe Bryant, their 13-year-old daughter Gianna, and seven others.

The panel of nine jurors agreed that deputies and firefighters invaded the privacy of the NBA star’s widow and brought her emotional distress by taking photos of the remains of the LA Lakers hero and his daughter.

Hours after the verdict, Vanessa rushed to social media to celebrate the ruling.

“All for you! I love you! JUSTICE for Kobe and Gigi,” the 40-year-old wrote on Instagram alongside a snap of herself with her late husband and daughter.

“#BetOnYourself #Mambaday #Mambamentality,” added Vanessa, who is also mom to daughters Natalia, 19, Bianka, 5, and 3-year-old Capri.

Vanessa wept quietly as the verdict was read following 4.5 hours of jury deliberation, and walked out of court holding Natalia’s hand.

The jurors also awarded $15 million to plaintiff Chris Chester, who lost his wife Sarah and daughter Payton in the Calabasas, California, wreck.

Jurors unanimously found that the LA County Sheriff’s Department violated the constitutional rights of Bryant and Chester when they failed to train their employees on accident scene picture-sharing protocol.

Bryant’s attorney, Luis Li told the jury the photos were “not public and not [for] deputies to share.”

The pictures were shared mostly between employees of the LA County sheriff’s and fire departments and seen by some of their spouses.

The photos had not been made public, but Bryant, 40 testified that the prospect of the images being leaked riddled her with fear and anxiety.

“I live in fear every day of being on social media and these popping up,” she testified last week. “I live in fear of my daughters being on social media and these popping up.”