The Nikki Catsouras photographs controversy concerns the leaked photographs of Nicole "Nikki" Catsouras (March 4, 1988 – October 31, 2006), who died at the age of 18 in a high speed car crash after losing control of her father's Porsche 911 Carrera and colliding with a toll booth in Lake Forest, California. Photographs of Catsouras' badly disfigured body were published on the internet, leading her family to take legal action for the distress this caused.
On October 31, 2006, Catsouras and her parents ate lunch together at the family home in Ladera Ranch, California. Afterward, her father, Christos Catsouras, left for work while her mother Lesli remained at home.
Around 10 minutes later, her mother saw Catsouras reversing out of the driveway in Christos' Porsche 911 Carrera, which she was not permitted to drive. Lesli called her husband and he began driving around trying to find his daughter.
[1] While doing so, he called 911, apparently minutes before the accident, and was put on hold. When he was taken off hold the dispatcher informed him of the accident.
The daughter of novelist Lesli Catsouras and real estate broker Christos Catsouras, Nikki Catsouras, age 18, went out of the House on 31 October 2006 to have a joyride in one of her dad’s expensive cars.
Criminal investigators gave two officers of the California Highway Patrol access to photos they had taken of the crash site for forensic analysis.
Nikki Catsouras’ family sued the California Highway Patrol (CHP) and the two dispatch supervisors for leaking the pictures.
[The Judge of the Superior Court of California for Orage County initially ruled that moving forward with the family’s legal claim against the CHP for disclosing the photos would be proper.
An internal inquiry revealed that the two dispatch supervisors had broken departmental rules, which prompted the CHP to issue a public apology and take steps to avoid repeat incidents.
