Vanessa Bryant sues helicopter operator in crash that killed Kobe Bryant and 8 others by Lori Aratani

 

Lawyers for Vanessa Bryant, the widow of Laker great Kobe Bryant, on Monday filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the company that operated the helicopter that crashed into a California hillside last month, killing her husband, 13-year-old daughter and seven others.
The suit was filed on the same day that thousands of fans gathered at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, to remember Bryant and his daughter Gianna. The lawsuit alleges that the helicopter company, Island Express, was “vicariously liable” for any and all actions of pilot Ara George Zobayan, including his “negligent and careless piloting …”
“Defendant Island Express Helicopters authorized and/or permitted a flight with full knowledge that the subject helicopter was flying to into unsafe weather conditions,” the suit, filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleges.
The suit also faults Zobayan for failing to “properly monitor and assess” the weather before takeoff and for failing to “abort the flight when he knew of the cloudy conditions.”
In an emailed statement, a spokesman for Island Express said: “This was a tragic accident. We will have no comment on the pending litigation.”