The death of Gabby Petito, who was murdered by her boyfriend Brian Laundrie, has spurred numerous lawsuits against the Laundrie family – one of which was filed last year by Petito’s parents and is ongoing. Last week, the lawyer representing the Petito family renewed a request for a certain piece of evidence.
The evidence, which has been brought up before, includes a letter that was written by Roberta Laundrie that was addressed to her son, Brian, prior to the murder of Gabby. In the letter, she allegedly offers to lend her son a shovel to help bury a body, as well as help him get out of prison – among other findings.
The letter was allegedly sent in an envelope that read ‘burn after reading’ and was originally found in Brian’s backpack at the site of his apparent suicide – where his body was found by the FBI. As of this writing, the letter has been turned over to the Laundrie family and hasn’t been entered into the lawsuit.
The two sides came head-to-head, yet again, in Sarasota County Circuit Court in Florida on Tuesday for a remote hearing – where the Petito family lawyer, Patrick Reilly, renewed his request to have the letter shown to a jury. He first came across the letter at an FBI regional office and wants immediate access to it.
“The language in that letter is damning, and that letter has a reference to bringing a shovel and burying a body,” said Reilly on Tuesday. He believes Roberta Laundrie, who wrote the letter, should be asked about it in a deposition. Of course, the defense attorney for the Laundrie family doesn’t see how it is relevant.
“This document pre-dates Brian and Gabby’s trip, so its creation really doesn’t have any relation to the unfortunate events that unfolded thereafter. I know that some of the wording that was used in the letter is unfortunate and might suggest that it has some connection, but it doesn’t,” said P. Matthew Luka in court.
To contest that statement, Reilly argued that the letter wasn’t dated at all, so there’s no way of telling whether it was written before or after the trip – documents written before July 1, 2021, can’t be submitted into discovery, which is what Luka was referring to. The Judge appears to agree with Reilly’s sentiment.
Family Lawyers Release New Photo of Gabby Petito
A few weeks ago, Petito family attorneys released a never-seen-before photo of Gabby Petito that was allegedly taken moments before she and her fiance were stopped by police in August 2021. It was a photo that was used in the lawsuit against Moab City Police, citing negligence against their daughter.
While the photo wasn’t originally released to the public, they felt it necessary to show others what Gabby looked like when police last saw her during a domestic disturbance call against Brian. In the photo, she appears to be bruised and bloodied by her left eye following a report that Brian hit her inside a store.
Upon interviewing the couple for nearly an hour, no files were charged, and the police made a suggestion that they spend some time apart. No more than a month later, Gabby Petito was reported missing after not returning from their cross-country trip. Her body was found on September 19 in a national park.
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The ongoing lawsuit cites emotional distress on the Petito family caused by the Laundrie family, who allegedly knew of Gabby’s death weeks before her body was found – during that time, FBI and local officials were searching for her body. A trial is currently scheduled for August – so stay tuned!
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