The tragic story of Gabby Petito’s murder involved many parts, from true crime TikTokers to Brian Laundrie’s parents.
Brian abused and ultimately murdered her.
But, as the entire world noted, there were others who catastrophically dropped the ball while Gabby was alive.
Most significantly, police failed Gabby even when an eyewitness called to report abuse. Gabby’s family is taking action.
Gabby Petito’s parents have filed a wrongful deth claim against the police of Moab, Utah.
The family accuses officers of failing to recognize their daughter as a victim of domestic violence.
This was, of course, despite a 911 call and other obvious signs of abuse.
Gabby’s parents say that the abject failure of police led to Gabby’s death.
“We believe that these officers were negligent,” attorney Brian Stewart stated in a press conference this week.
“And,” Stewart continued, “that their negligence contributed to the cause of Gabby’s death.”
The family’s civil action seeks $50 million from the police department, its assistant chief, and the officers themselves.
Two weeks before Brian Laundrie murdered Gabby, these police officers stopped the couple.
Professional failings by the cops and a failure of training in the department, the family argues, amounts to negligence.
“While the full evidence has not been made public,” attorney James McConkie acknowledged.
“When it is released,” McConkie continued, “it will clearly show that if the officers had been properly trained.”
McConkie went on: “And followed the law, Gabby would still be alive today.”
Moab officers Eric Pratt and Daniel Robbins made catastrophic mistakes in their response.
On August 12, 2021, they responded to a “domestic problem.”
A previous investigation concluded that the mistakes were not intentional (that’s why we call them mistakes).
Almost one year ago, a 911 caller contacted authorities after witnessing Brian abusing Gabby.
The responsible citizen reported to the 911 operator that they had seen him hit her in the face.
Curiously, police did not interview the 911 caller.
Instead, police focused their attention upon Gabby, branding her as the aggressor.
We won’t joke that the police were acting out a sneak peek of this spring’s Johnny Depp vs Amber Heard lawsuit.
Gabby told officers that her soon-to-be murderer had grabbed her face hard enough to scratch her cheek. He had also grabbed her arm hard enough to leave marks.
In fact, the incident in which he grabbed her face was particularly ominous.
It appears that his hand restricted her airway. Initially unreleased photos also showed that Brian had drawn blood.
As we all know, he went on to strangle her to death later that month.
“When asked about her fight with Brian, Gabby displayed the classic hallmarks of an abused partner,” the legal claim notes.
The filing continues: “attempting to take blame for the fight because she had hit Brian first.”
“And,” the claim explains, “that she did not want to be separated from him.”
“Whether for lack of training or refusal to follow their training,” the wrongful death claim laments, “the officers did not press further.”
Officers did not seem to question obvious inconsistencies in Brian Laundrie’s version of events.
Instead, they helped him to find a hotel room for the night, leaving Gabby to sleep in the van.
Nichole Schmidt hopes that her daughter’s tragic murder can make a difference to someone in the future.
In the mean time, this wrongful death suit may be difficult. And not only because Gabby’s cause of death is so clear.
Remember, SCOTUS has ruled that police have no legal obligation to “protect and serve.” It’s unclear how precedents like this will impact this case.
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