Vanessa Bryant lawsuit: ex-Los Angeles fire captain denies sharing photos of Kobe Bryant’s corpse

Kobe Bryant’s widow Vanessa Bryant filed a lawsuit against Los Angeles County in September 2020, alleging first responders at the crash site shared images of the deceased basketball star’s corpse with others. Court proceedings finally began last Wednesday. On Monday, retired LA fire captain Brian Jordan testified in front of the jury at a federal court in the city. While he admitted to taking “graphic pictures”, he denies sharing the same. Instead, he retorted that they were taken under instructions from superiors:

“I followed many instructions that day but was told ‘take pictures, take pictures, take pictures,'” quotes Fox News.

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He contradicted bartender Victor Gutierrez’s testimony. He had earlier alleged that an off-duty sheriff had shown him pictures from the crash site, including that of Kobe Bryant’s remains, when at his bar.

But Jordan, visibly distressed, claimed that he wasn’t at fault, and neither had he participated in such misdemeanours. He pointed to how the incident had left him traumatized and was partially why he had quit his job in 2021:

“It was horrifying and what put me off the job,” he told the courtroom.

Jordan excused himself from court on several occasions when posed with questions requiring a detailed explanation of events. Asked if he had taken photos of Bryant’s body, he replied in disgust:

“Thank you, now I see intestines in my head.”

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At one stage, he snapped at Vanessa’s lawyers, responding to their queries with “I don’t want to hear this drama.” He also claimed that he did know their daughter, Gianna Bryant when asked if he had also taken her picture.

The legendary LA Lakers shooting guard died in a helicopter crash at Calabasas, just 48 km from downtown LA, on January 26, 2020. Eight others who were on board- 13-year-old daughter Gianni, baseball coach John Altobelli and family, Payton Chester and her mother, basketball coach Christina Mauser and pilot Ara Zobayan- also died.