Bryant, wife face lawsuit

A former housekeeper for Newport Coast resident Kobe Bryant is suing the Lakers star and his wife, alleging Vanessa Bryant demanded she put her hand in a bag of dog feces and that she verbally abused her constantly.

Maria Jimenez, who worked for Kobe and Vanessa Bryant as a housekeeper for about seven months at the couple’s Newport Coast home, claims Vanessa Bryant “badgered, harassed and humiliated” her, according to a wrongful discharge lawsuit filed March 20 in Orange County Superior Court.

Jimenez claims Vanessa Bryant made her pick up animal droppings around the house, even leaving dog feces on the floor for her to clean up on her day off.

Vanessa Bryant called Jimenez “slow” and “lazy,” although she worked 60 hours a week at the Bryant home, according to the lawsuit. She also accused Jimenez of stealing clothing, a toy and other personal items from the Bryant home, according to the complaint.

The law firm representing the Bryant family, Loeb & Loeb LLP, released this statement:

“We have learned that a former employee of the Bryants, Maria Jimenez, has filed a complaint against our clients. Ms. Jimenez’s outrageous allegations of improper conduct are totally unfounded and patently false. The Bryants intend to vigorously defend against these untruthful allegations and are confident that the baseless nature of the allegations will be proven.”

The former housekeeper, who worked for the Bryants from September 2007 to March 22, 2008, claims she wanted to quit the job soon after she was hired because of Vanessa Bryant’s abusive conduct, but Kobe Bryant persuaded her to stay.

In one incident, Vanessa Bryant screamed at Jimenez when she tried to comfort one of the Bryant children who wasn’t feeling well, the lawsuit claims.

“‘I don’t want you to touch my baby. I hired you for housekeeping, not baby sitting,’” Jimenez claims Bryant shouted at her, according to court documents.

The situation in the Bryant home came to a head in 2008 when Vanessa Bryant allegedly yelled at Jimenez for putting an expensive blouse in the washing machine. Vanessa Bryant demanded Jimenez retrieve the price tag for the blouse out of a bag of dog feces, court documents show.

Jimenez refused to fish the price tag out of the bag of dog feces and told Vanessa Bryant she wanted to quit, according to court documents. Vanessa Bryant demanded Jimenez pay $690 for the blouse, according to the complaint. Jimenez worked until her last payday to pay for the garment.

Jimenez also claims the Bryants promised to pay her $50,000 a year and provide medical insurance for her and her family for her services as a housekeeper. She later learned the Bryants had not paid for medical insurance. The former housekeeper claims she incurred more than $7,000 in medical expenses for a back injury and underwent surgery for an ovarian cyst that cost $120,000 while she was employed at the Bryant home.

Vanessa Bryant called Jimenez “a [expletive] liar” when she told her employer about her back injury, Jimenez claims.

Jimenez wants the Bryants to pay her unpaid overtime and wages, attorneys fees and unspecified damages for wrongful termination, emotional distress and invasion of privacy, according to court documents.

“She actually liked Kobe Bryant; he’s the good guy in this story,” Attorney William Vogeler, who represents Jimenez, said. “She did not want to file a lawsuit or be involved in any claims, but her medical bills are overwhelming and she asked me to pursue her rights.”

Vogeler said he wrote a letter to the Bryants, asking them to resolve the matter before a lawsuit was filed. He received a response from the couple’s attorneys denying Jimenez’s claims.

Kobe Bryant’s agent, Rob Pelinka, could not immediately be reached for comment.

Reporter BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at [email protected].