Vanessa Bryant Donating Proceeds From $16 Million Trial Payout to Mamba and Mambacita Foundation
Vanessa's lawyer revealed she plans to give the $16 million payout to the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation.
MikeTyes
After winning her multi-million dollar lawsuit against Los Angeles County, Vanessa Bryant is paying it forward to a cause near and dear to her late husband, Kobe Bryant, and their late daughter, Gianna Bryant.
Vanessa and co-plaintiff Christopher Chester -- who lost his wife, Sarah, and 13-year-old daughter, Payton, in the same helicopter crash that killed Kobe and 13-year-old Gianna -- were seeking millions of dollars in damages for emotional distress after gruesome photos of the victims' bodies were leaked and taken by officers at the site of the fatal January 2020 crash.
On Wednesday, a jury ordered Los Angeles County to pay $31 million to Vanessa and Christopher, according to multiple reports. The jury awarded $16 million to Vanessa and $15 million to Christopher.
Per The Los Angeles Times, Vanessa's lawyer, Luis Li, revealed that Vanessa plans to give an unspecified amount of the verdict award to the Mamba and Mambacita Sports Foundation, a nonprofit that continues Kobe and Gianna's legacies by offering opportunities to underprivileged young athletes.
"From the beginning, Vanessa Bryant has sought only accountability, but our legal system does not permit her to force better policies, more training or officer discipline," Luis said in a statement to the outlet. "Those measures are the responsibility of the sheriff's and fire departments -- responsibilities that Mrs. Bryant's efforts have exposed as woefully deficient, even giving amnesty to the wrongdoers."
He added that Bryant "never faltered, even when the county attempted to force her to submit to an involuntary psychiatric examination."
While Vanessa left the courthouse without making a statement to the press, she took to Instagram later in the day and shared a photo of herself, Kobe, and Gianna, which she captioned, "All for you! I love you! JUSTICE for Kobe and Gigi! #Betonyourself #MambaDay 8•24•22."
The verdict coincidentally came down on Kobe Bryant Day, aka Mamba Day, which is a day honoring the late Los Angeles Lakers legend, whose jersey numbers were #8 and #24 day. It was also shortly after what would have been Kobe's 44th birthday, on Aug. 23.
“Happy birthday, baby! I love you and miss you so much! #44 ❤️ @kobebryant,” Vanessa wrote on Instagram alongside a throwback picture of her being embraced by her husband, who is wearing a Los Angeles Lakers 2009 championship T- shirt and hat.
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