The names of four Los Angeles County Sheriff Department deputies who allegedly took or shared grisly photos of the scene of the helicopter crash that killed NBA legend Kobe Bryant will be released to Vanessa Bryant, a judge ruled Monday.
Attorneys for the LASD and Los Angeles County wanted to keep the deputies’ names and ranks sealed, arguing that “hackers may attempt to seek out and gain access to the individual deputies’ devices to locate any photographs and publish them,” according to court documents.
U.S. District Judge John F. Walter said in a ruling on Monday that this is “totally inconsistent with their position that such photographs no longer exist.”
Sheriff Alex Villanueva previously confirmed that all photos of the crash that were in the possession of those deputies have been deleted.
Bryant last month called for the sheriff’s department to release the names of the deputies involved in the photo sharing, saying they must be held accountable. Her husband, their 13-year-old daughter Gianna and the seven other people killed in the January 2020 helicopter crash.
“The Sheriff’s Department wants to redact the names of the deputies that took and/or shared photos of my husband, daughter and other victims,” Bryant wrote in a statement posted on Instagram. “Anyone else facing allegations would be unprotected, named and released to the public. … These specific deputies need to be held accountable for their actions just like everyone else.”
Bryant’s attorney Luis Li welcomed the judge’s ruling Monday night, telling CNN in a statement, “Transparency promotes accountability. We look forward to presenting Mrs. Bryant’s case in open Court.”
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