The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors announced Tuesday it approved a $2.5 million settlement for two families suing over leaked photographs of the 2020 Calabasas helicopter crash that killed family members along with basketball star Kobe Bryant.
Several suits filed against the county in connection with the crash allege that sheriff’s deputies took and shared photos of the crash scene without authorization, causing loved ones of the deceased significant distress.
The proposed settlement is still subject to court approval, but should it be approved, plaintiff Matthew Mauser, who lost his wife, Christine, in the crash would receive $1.25 million. Siblings J.J. and Alexis Altobelli, who lost their mother, Keri; father, John; and sister, Alyssa, would share another $1.25 million between them.
The board approved the settlement amount without comment, but counsel for the county recommended the move to avoid “further litigation costs.” The county has already spent nearly $1.3 million on the two cases.
The county also faces another suit filed by Bryant’s widow, Vanessa, alleging she and her family suffered severe emotional distress after the photos were leaked. Both Kobe Bryant and the couple’s 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, died in the crash.
The family of Sarah Chester and her 13-year-old daughter, Payton, who also died in the crash, filed their own suit against the county last December.
Neither the Chesters nor the Bryants are parties to the settlement approved Tuesday.
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