Basketball fans in Kentucky may have read about the helicopter crash that killed Los Angeles Lakers player Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna. In February, Kobe Bryant’s widow Vanessa Bryant filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the company that owned the helicopter. Now, family members of other people killed in the same accident have also filed wrongful death lawsuits.
Vanessa Bryant’s lawsuit named the company that owned the helicopter, Island Express Helicopters Inc., and the deceased helicopter operator as defendants. According to Bryant’s claim, the helicopter operator carelessly flew in foggy conditions when he should have aborted the flight. Reports have come out since the accident that Island Express pilots did not have appropriate certification for flying in the type of foggy conditions that were seen on the day of the accident.
The two other wrongful death lawsuits that were filed do not name the pilot as a defendant. All of the lawsuits name the helicopter company as a defendant and accuse the company of carelessness and negligence. The latest lawsuits were filed by the families of four people who died in the crash, which included Gianna Bryant’s basketball coach and one of her teammates.
A family that has lost a loved one in an aircraft or motor vehicle accident may not know right away who was at fault for the accident. While the accident is being investigated, family members might begin talking to a lawyer about filing a wrongful death claim. A lawyer may be able to help the family to determine all of the parties that are liable for the accident depending on who is at fault. In many cases, a company that hired a negligent driver can be sued for wrongful death along with the negligent driver.