Is there a statute of limitations for calling people out on their misrepresentation of facts? We say absolutely not — especially when it comes to legal allegations.
Vanessa Bryant took to her Instagram Stories on February 27, addressing comments made by both Evan Rachel Wood and Abigail Disney. The two women labeled Kobe Bryant a rapist shortly after his passing last year in that awful helicopter crash, and it seems that Vanessa just happened to notice what it was they said about her late husband.
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Let’s start with her response to Wood’s tweet. Back on January 26, 2020, Evan Rachel reacted to the Lakers player’s death, saying the following:
“What has happened is tragic. I am heartbroken for Kobe’s family. He was a sports hero. He was also a rapist. And all of these truths can exist simultaneously.”
Huh. So, what she’s referencing is the infamous Colorado court case back from 2003.
A woman accused Kobe of sexual assault, but when they went to court, the criminal charges he faced were dropped because the accuser no longer decided to testify. In the end, the woman sued him afterward, and the two parties reached a settlement.
Upon finding Evan’s post, Vanessa decided to set the record straight. On her IG this weekend, the grieving wife took a screenshot of the post from 2020 and added her own caption over it. She said:
“Your false, insensitive, defamatory and slanderous tweet on 1/26/20 is vile and disturbing to say the least? Behavior like this is part of the reason why innocent black men go to jail for crimes they didn’t commit. An accusation doesn’t make someone guilty.”
We’re with Vanessa COMPLETELY!
It truly sounds like Wood needed to get her facts straight before making a comment calling anyone a rapist, especially given her level of followers. We live in a world where it’s so easy to manipulate the facts, and as a celebrity she needs to be more aware of her actions.
And yes, we’re extremely sensitive to the accusations leveled against Kobe back in that 2003 case. You can be both things at once! But those charges were dropped, the accuser didn’t testify, and parties came to a settlement. Point being, to then call Kobe a rapist 17 years later is factually incorrect in this instance.
Related: Vanessa Shares Touching Valentine’s Day Message For Her Beloved Late Husband
In a followup post, Bryant also screenshotted another similar post from Abigail posted on January 29, 2020. In this one, Disney had written:
“I haven’t said anything about Kobe so far because I felt some time needed to pass before weighing in. But yes, it’s time for the sledgehammer to come out. The man was a rapist. Deal with it.”
And she followed it up with linking to an opinion piece written about Kobe in The Washington Post.
To this commentary, Vanessa wrote something nearly identical to her Evan Rachel response. However, her ending was a little bit different with:
“YOU DON’T KNOW THE FACTS OF THE CASE.”
Good for her, defending her late husband and family.
But what do you think, Perezcious readers? Where do U stand when it comes to Vanessa defending Kobe like this — understandable AF, no? And how do you see Abigail and Evan’s actions in regards to posting accusations like that in the first place?
Sound OFF with your take down in the comments (below)…
[Image via Vanessa Bryant/Instagram & Evan Rachel Wood/Instagram]
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