LOS ANGELES _ Vanessa Bryant is "absolutely devastated" by allegations that Los Angeles County sheriff's deputies shared photos of the helicopter crash that killed her husband, daughter and seven others, her attorney said in a statement.
Attorney Gary C. Robb requested an internal affairs investigation into the allegations and the "harshest possible discipline" for those responsible.
He said in the statement that Vanessa Bryant personally went to the sheriff's office after the Jan. 26 crash and requested the area be designated as a "no-fly zone" and guarded from photographers.
"At that time, Sheriff Alex Villanueva assured us all measures would be put in place to protect the families' privacy, and it is our understanding that he has worked hard to honor those requests," Robb said. He demanded that the deputies be identified "to ensure that the photos are not further disseminated."
The Los Angeles Times first reported allegations that deputies were sharing graphic photographs of the scene. An individual reported one deputy for showing grim images at a Norwalk bar.
According to two public safety sources with knowledge of the events, the Sheriff's Department quietly ordered deputies to delete any photos in an attempt to keep the matter under wraps.
Normally, such a complaint would trigger a formal inquiry and possibly an internal affairs investigation, strictly following the chain of command, the sources said.
Instead, in the days after the Jan. 26 crash, deputies were ordered to report to the sheriff's Lost Hills station and told that if they came clean and deleted the photos, they would not face any discipline, said the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the events.
The sources said they were concerned the directive to delete the photos could amount to the destruction of evidence.
It's unclear how widely the photos might have been disseminated and who exactly was involved. It's also unclear whether the deputies had actually taken the photos at the scene or had received them from someone else.
