The first witness to take the stand on August 12 was Luella Weireter, whose husband Cody Weireter is a captain at the Los Angeles Fire Department. Luella has a unique connection to the case, as she not only witnessed members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department allegedly sharing graphic photos of the victims’ remains, but her cousin, Keri Altobelli, also died in the same helicopter crash. According to a Nicki Swift courtroom reporter, the witness recalled attending the Golden Mike Awards in February 2020, only weeks after the fatal crash. While on the stand, Luella alleged Fire Captain Tony Imbrenda showed the disturbing photos at the event to a group that included Fire Fighter Specialist Sky Cornell.
Both Luella and her husband did not look at the photos, but it was clear to her what was going on. “They were looking at photos of the accident site,” Luella said during her tearful testimony, per a Nicki Swift reporter. At one point, Imbrenda’s wife — who was unaware of Luella’s connection to Altobelli — tried to get her to look at the photos, describing her demeanor as “excited.”
According to Luella, the group looked at the photos for around five minutes. Afterward, the witness recalled Cornell allegedly joking about the grisly photos. “I can’t believe I just looked at Kobe’s burnt up body and now I’m about to eat,” Luella claimed he said, visibly choking up at the memory. Meanwhile, our reporter observed Vanessa silently crying with her head in her hands, staying that way through much of the remaining testimony.
