Cop who shared Kobe crash site photos caught in another scandal
The sheriff's deputy who allegedly photographed the bodies of Kobe Bryant and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna at the helicopter crash site is now involved in another shameful scandal.
He was recorded kneeling on the neck of a handcuffed inmate for several minutes.
Vanessa Bryant, widow of the Los Angeles Lakers legend, is suing the LA County sheriff's deputy for sharing the pictures with other officers and firefighters.
Vanessa's attorney Luis Li wrote in the documents filed in January 2022 that pretrial evidence, "has shown that the close-up photos of Gianna and Kobe's remains were passed around on at least 28 sheriff's department devices and by at least a dozen firefighters, and shown off in bars and at an awards gala."
The deputy, Douglas Johnson, is now facing more scrutiny as Vanessa has asked the judge to allow the jury to know that he kneeled on an inmates neck.
Johnson kneeling on handcuffed inmate Enzo Escalante's neck ocurred around the time George Floyd was killed in the same manner.
The LA County Sheriff's Department allegedly tried to bury the video of Johnson kneeling on Escalante's neck to avoid bad press.
LA County fights Vanessa Bryant
LA County is fighing Vanessa's petition, claiming the incident has nothing to do with the lawsuit.
"The only reason Plaintiff would seek to elicit testimony about Deputy Johnson's altercation with the inmate and LASD's response is to impugn Deputy Johnson's and Sheriff [Alex] Villanueva's character," the county stated. "This is improper."
A judge has yet to make a decision on the matter.
As for the pictures of Kobe's remains, Vanessa says she lives in fear that they will get leaked on the internet. She says that it's horrible to see "Kobe Bryant body" appear on Google search suggestions when she types her husband's name.
"The gratuitous sharing continued in the following days and weeks and included such outrageous conduct as flaunting the photos in a bar while pantomiming dismemberment, Vanessa's lawyers stated in previous court documents. "Showing off the photos over cocktails at an awards gala, and casually texting the photos to a group chat of video-game buddies while playing Call of Duty."
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