"I think the FBI would be very cautious about things because they don't want to make a mistake," he told Fox News. "Whatever reasons they're withholding, it is very unusual."
"I think that the only reason would be, you're concerned that you're missing something, but that should not be a concern, because whatever is needed to investigate the death from the point of view of the medical examiner will be seen, documented and could be retained."
If a pathologist is questioning whether someone suffered from heart disease, he or she would retain the heart – "but you don’t retain the whole body," Baden said.
In 2021," he went on, "where anything of value can be document[ed], retained, tested on day one or two or three, there's no reason to keep the whole body from the family."
Usually, if one thinks of other deaths, high-profile or not, the cause of death is certainly revealed. Sometimes, sometimes the manner of death is held up," he said.
Baden is not involved in the investigation into Petito’s death. Speaking generally, when asked if releasing a victim’s manner of death implies that the cause is already known, he said: "Yes."
He continued: "Now, what they're saying is, whatever they found, they've ruled out accidents, suicides or natural deaths that could cause it."
Gabby Petito update: FBI’s decision to hold victim’s remains, cause of death ‘very unusual,’ Dr. Baden says
