Found Deceased WY - Gabby Petito, Grand Teton National Park #86

[Deleted member 39678]

"the conduct must be objectively outrageous to someone observing it"

And IMHO it was.

What part of Bertolino's statement do you feel was objectively outrageous?

 

[10ofRods]

I would like to see a better resolution for these images, it's hard for me to tell.
All IMHO:
At the time of this recording Gabby planned on showing her face in public soon (they were on their way to the Arches) so IMO she would have tried to clean up and hide her injuries as much as possible. Abusers don't like it when their victims are visibly injured, it attracts too much attention. Visible injuries also force the abuser to literally face the consequences of his actions, which make them even angrier. Brian would definitely have insisted that Gabby look "presentable" when they arrived.

edit to add: Watching the footage again, I realize that Gabby apologizes to the officer before he even asks a question

As someone who has had to hide marks from domestic violence while in a college dorm and in more than one national park, I can say it's not that hard. Makeup works wonders, and people really do not get that close to you at campsites. Dorm was harder, but not that hard.

It is really important to make those injuries invisible, I agree. At least in the short run. Like Gabby, I did occasionally take pictures (and still have those pictures).

Most abusers learn over time to put the injuries in places that are covered by clothing. Gabby's injuries are not bleeding profusely, a little clean-up and some concealer and she was good for the camera, IMO. I have students who do the same thing, tragically.

I worry that she could have had bruising or other injuries on parts of her body that we can't see. It's sad so and so infuriating.

 

[Eli9]

The lawyer for Petito’s parents, Patrick Reilly, said during a remote hearing in Sarasota County Circuit Court in Florida that he saw the letter at an FBI regional office and it expressed things “including helping him get out of prison, getting a shovel and some other things.”


The envelope containing the letter said “burn after reading” according to Reilly, who said the letter was recovered from Brian Laundrie’s backpack when his body was found.

Gabby Petito's family attorney wants the letter he says Brian Laundrie's mom wrote him offering to bury a body, with inscription 'burn after reading'

Brian Laundrie's mother wrote a letter to her son that included references to getting a shovel and burying a body, an attorney representing the parents of Gabby Petito said during a court hearing Tuesday.

www.cnn.com

 

[Curious_in_NC]

The lawyer for Petito’s parents, Patrick Reilly, said during a remote hearing in Sarasota County Circuit Court in Florida that he saw the letter at an FBI regional office and it expressed things “including helping him get out of prison, getting a shovel and some other things.”


The envelope containing the letter said “burn after reading” according to Reilly, who said the letter was recovered from Brian Laundrie’s backpack when his body was found.

Gabby Petito's family attorney wants the letter he says Brian Laundrie's mom wrote him offering to bury a body, with inscription 'burn after reading'

Brian Laundrie's mother wrote a letter to her son that included references to getting a shovel and burying a body, an attorney representing the parents of Gabby Petito said during a court hearing Tuesday.

www.cnn.com

Interesting. If you search this thread for "letter" it seems that existence of this letter has been known for some time, but its date, and how it was discovered, seem to have a murky back story. This news story suggests it was found in Brian's backpack. Others suggest it was recovered from either their van or from the Laundries' home. Since the FBI had it at one point, I would guess they have the most knowledge of its chain of custody.

 

[PrairieWind]

Interesting. If you search this thread for "letter" it seems that existence of this letter has been known for some time, but its date, and how it was discovered, seem to have a murky back story. This news story suggests it was found in Brian's backpack. Others suggest it was recovered from either their van or from the Laundries' home. Since the FBI had it at one point, I would guess they have the most knowledge of its chain of custody.

I haven't really been following this thread or this story for quite some time. So this is the first I've heard of this letter. I am still pretty confused about all sorts of things! lol

 

[Eli9]

Interesting. If you search this thread for "letter" it seems that existence of this letter has been known for some time, but its date, and how it was discovered, seem to have a murky back story. This news story suggests it was found in Brian's backpack. Others suggest it was recovered from either their van or from the Laundries' home. Since the FBI had it at one point, I would guess they have the most knowledge of its chain of custody.

The FBI gave the letter to Bertolino in June of last year according to the article but I'm not so sure the Judge is keen to allow it.

 

[housewife]

What part of Bertolino's statement do you feel was objectively outrageous?

I have no legal knowledge whatsoever, and all of this is IMHO.
I believe the Laundries and Bertolino knew Gabby was dead and (possibly) the location of her remains, but did not help end the search. Here is their statement again, I want to analyze it:
"It is our understanding that a search has been organized for Miss Petito in or near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. On behalf of the Laundrie family it is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family."

"It is our understanding that a search has been organized for Miss Petito"
My interpretation: We acknowledge that a woman named Miss Petito is missing. We don't know her full name. We are aware that many other people are searching for this woman. We did not organize the search for this woman.

On behalf of the Laundrie family it is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family."
My interpretation: We will not participate in the search, ourselves. We hope this woman is located, whatever condition she is in. We are not concerned about this woman's well-being or even if she is still alive. We are not concerned that this woman is found safely or unharmed.
We are not interested in reuniting with Miss Petito (likely because they know she is dead), and we do not view ourselves as her family.

 

[Gemmie]

"It is our understanding that a search has been organized for Miss Petito"
My interpretation: We acknowledge that a woman named Miss Petito is missing. We don't know her full name.

On behalf of the Laundrie family it is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family."
My interpretation: We will not participate in the search, ourselves.

S&BBMFF

I think they were simply being polite by calling her Miss Petito. I know they knew her name because she lived with them for a while. All MOO

What I find interesting about the 2nd section, and came to mind for the first time when I read it, is that they didn't bother to search for their missing DIL, but they DID search for their son. Sure, one was closer to travel to than the other, and one was flesh and blood while the other was not, but they supposedly cared about her and lived in the same house. They sure didn't act like they cared much about her once she went missing. Again, MOO.

 

[housewife]

S&BBMFF

I think they were simply being polite by calling her Miss Petito. I know they knew her name because she lived with them for a while. All MOO

What I find interesting about the 2nd section, and came to mind for the first time when I read it, is that they didn't bother to search for their missing DIL, but they DID search for their son. Sure, one was closer to travel to than the other, and one was flesh and blood while the other was not, but they supposedly cared about her and lived in the same house. They sure didn't act like they cared much about her once she went missing. Again, MOO.

I thought it was a legal issue that they couldn't use Gabby's first name or nickname. Not sure why I thought that.

Using "Miss Petito" to sound formal and polite ends up sounding very distant, as if they never met this woman at all and never intend to.

 

[Deleted member 39678]

I have no legal knowledge whatsoever, and all of this is IMHO.
I believe the Laundries and Bertolino knew Gabby was dead and (possibly) the location of her remains, but did not help end the search. Here is their statement again, I want to analyze it:
"It is our understanding that a search has been organized for Miss Petito in or near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. On behalf of the Laundrie family it is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family."

"It is our understanding that a search has been organized for Miss Petito"
My interpretation: We acknowledge that a woman named Miss Petito is missing. We don't know her full name. We are aware that many other people are searching for this woman. We did not organize the search for this woman.

On behalf of the Laundrie family it is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family."
My interpretation: We will not participate in the search, ourselves. We hope this woman is located, whatever condition she is in. We are not concerned about this woman's well-being or even if she is still alive. We are not concerned that this woman is found safely or unharmed.
We are not interested in reuniting with Miss Petito (likely because they know she is dead), and we do not view ourselves as her family.

Interesting interpretation. Thanks for your reply. Personally I didn't find anything in Bertolino's statement to be objectively outrageous. JMO.

 

[Deleted member 39678]

S&BBMFF

I think they were simply being polite by calling her Miss Petito. I know they knew her name because she lived with them for a while. All MOO

What I find interesting about the 2nd section, and came to mind for the first time when I read it, is that they didn't bother to search for their missing DIL, but they DID search for their son. Sure, one was closer to travel to than the other, and one was flesh and blood while the other was not, but they supposedly cared about her and lived in the same house. They sure didn't act like they cared much about her once she went missing. Again, MOO.

Did Gabby's parents travel to Wyoming to search for her? I found where her stepfather did but I'm not sure about her mom and dad. JMO.

Gabby Petito’s stepfather heads to Wyoming to help coordinate search

James Schmidt, the stepfather of missing Long Island woman Gabby Petito has travelled to Wyoming to help join search efforts — vowing not to leave until he brings her home.

nypost.com

 

[iamnotagolem]

Poor thing is very dehydrated in the photo -- look at her lips. IIRC, one of the things she said to LE was that they were out of water and she was really thirsty, which is why she didn't want to "calm down" or be told to take a walk around the block before they went back to the park to fill up their water tank.

We were in Moab in March 2022 so it was much cooler than when they were there in August, but it's the driest place I've ever been in my life. We drank more water than I've ever drank in my life, we were constantly putting on lip balm, it took days to recover from the dehydration after leaving Moab. I'm sure it was so much worse in August, if they were out of water, I bet she was panicky and terrified.

 

[TL4S]

IMO, there seemed to be several hints that perhaps they were low on money. I'm not trying to restart a debate over who had what and how much money, because regardless of what we think we know about their financial situation, we're only guessing.

Some concerns: they didn't have water, so they were going without it in the desert until they got to a park where they could refill their tank? They couldn't stop somewhere in Moab and buy a bottle? They camped in free spaces, even likely spots they weren't really supposed to? They possibly didn't pay at MP?

These are all events that also seemingly happened in locations of known arguments or physical altercations. IMO, they were terribly unequipped for the whole thing, in every way imaginable. I'm not throwing blame at anyone, but these young people were just not ready, and it's sad. I explored at that age, too, and looking back, I was lucky I had no worse outcomes...

 

[Gemmie]

IMO, there seemed to be several hints that perhaps they were low on money. I'm not trying to restart a debate over who had what and how much money, because regardless of what we think we know about their financial situation, we're only guessing.

Some concerns: they didn't have water, so they were going without it in the desert until they got to a park where they could refill their tank? They couldn't stop somewhere in Moab and buy a bottle? They camped in free spaces, even likely spots they weren't really supposed to? They possibly didn't pay at MP?

These are all events that also seemingly happened in locations of known arguments or physical altercations. IMO, they were terribly unequipped for the whole thing, in every way imaginable. I'm not throwing blame at anyone, but these young people were just not ready, and it's sad. I explored at that age, too, and looking back, I was lucky I had no worse outcomes...

If I recall, BL was very big on recycling and not wasting (as I am). Or it might have been Gabby (or both). So in my opinion, they didn't want to buy a bunch of individual bottles, but rather to refill their container. I commend them for doing it that way. I see way too much waste out in the world.

I'm not sure they weren't ready... more (to me) like they just didn't think some things through. Like when and where to fill up their water supply so as to not run out in the desert. That could take a fair amount of planning that some people just are not ever capable of, regardless of their age. Coming from my personal experience with someone in their 80s that couldn't plan a way out of a paper bag at any age. lol Really smart in some areas, not so much in others. I think we're all like that (good at some things and not good at others).

All MOO!

 

[Sundog]

Interesting. If you search this thread for "letter" it seems that existence of this letter has been known for some time, but its date, and how it was discovered, seem to have a murky back story. This news story suggests it was found in Brian's backpack. Others suggest it was recovered from either their van or from the Laundries' home. Since the FBI had it at one point, I would guess they have the most knowledge of its chain of custody.

If the FBI didn't believe there was anything nefarious about the letter and they returned it to the Laundrie's, then wonder why the attorney for the P's is focusing so much attention on the letter?

 

[Laughing]

We were in Moab in March 2022 so it was much cooler than when they were there in August, but it's the driest place I've ever been in my life. We drank more water than I've ever drank in my life, we were constantly putting on lip balm, it took days to recover from the dehydration after leaving Moab. I'm sure it was so much worse in August, if they were out of water, I bet she was panicky and terrified.

Yup.

My family lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, rather similar climate.

I carry a water bottle to walk the dog. Seriously. You need water all day & sometimes in the night.

Many people are unprepared for the climate, seems that GP & BL were as well. The climate and other issues....

 

[Slamalam]

If the FBI didn't believe there was anything nefarious about the letter and they returned it to the Laundrie's, then wonder why the attorney for the P's is focusing so much attention on the letter?

I think he wants a jury to decide if it’s relevant. MOO

 

[JudgeJudi]

Her face did not have blood on it when officer's pulled her over so it was not water the officer provided.

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He was all about power and control and it was on full show when they were pulled over.

 

[JudgeJudi]

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[NCWatcher]

We were in Moab in March 2022 so it was much cooler than when they were there in August, but it's the driest place I've ever been in my life. We drank more water than I've ever drank in my life, we were constantly putting on lip balm, it took days to recover from the dehydration after leaving Moab. I'm sure it was so much worse in August, if they were out of water, I bet she was panicky and terrified.

I'm having trouble understanding exactly where/when the recently released photo of Gabby was taken.

For example, in this account:

Attorneys say new photo is proof Moab police ignored Gabby Petito's visible injuries

The attorneys representing Gabby Petito’s family in a $50 million negligence lawsuit against the Moab Police Department say police ignored Petito’s visible injuries when they interviewed her and her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, weeks before she was murdered in 2021.

www.deseret.com

the P's attorney says it was taken just before the Moab stop. So the claim is LE in Moab should have seen those obvious injuries--- injuries that we certainly could not see on the body cam Moab photos released earlier. Even blowing those photos up I see nothing like what the selfie shows. And in the LE video GP talks about knowing she was injured only because if she touched an area it burned. Hadn't she looked at the selfie she took? (I know she said she hit B first but she did admit he grabbed her.)

The above acct doesn't say where the selfie was taken, just that it was taken right before the stop. It would seem the only way to know that was from a date stamp on the photo.

And this acct says the time on the photo was 4:37 pm. And two minutes after that at 4:39 pm a 911 call came in saying the person just witnessed GP being slapped in the parking lot.

Newly released photo appears to show Gabby Petito documenting her injuries before talking to Moab police

Family attorneys have released a photo that appears to show Gabby Petito documenting her injuries from a domestic violence assault before police talked to her in Moab.

www.sltrib.com

But this acct says the selfie was taken in the back of GP's van. So the photo must have been taken BEFORE anyone called 911. That's possible I guess. They fight. She gets in the back of the van and takes photo. They leave. Somebody belatedly decides to call 911 (without admitting it was belated.)

Gabby Petito selfie shows facial injury on day she was interviewed by Moab police, lawyer says

The photo, recovered from cloud storage, was taken in the back of Petito's van on August 12, the same day the couple was pulled over by Moab police as they were traveling through Utah, the family's lawyer says.

abc7ny.com

However, I thought the 911 bystander accts all agreed B&G were fighting in the street and GP climbed into the van through a front window as BL was driving away. They were then stopped shortly by LE. If so, when did GP climb into the back of the van to take the selfie showing her injuries? I don't get it. The photo doesn't show she's in the front seat though..... And it's not possible to climb from the front seat to the back area inside the van. Here's an interior view of the back area:
Bodycam Footage Reveals True Interior of Gabby Petito's Van

So how and when did GP get to back of the van to take the picture? Was it like this: They fight. She gets in van and takes photo. She gets out. They fight some more. 911 is called then. They leave with GP crawling in the window.

What am I missing? It seems to me we may be putting entirely too much faith in that date stamp to document when the photo was taken. If course, evidence will be needed in court re: the time but are cell camera clocks always accurate? (And many accts say the photo was found on her cell phone. I thought that hadn't been found. Do they mean they got access to cloud storage?) WHEN the photo was taken would seem to matter for the $50 million lawsuit (although I still would doubt a finding of wrongful death will be forthcoming since 2 weeks passed after the incident. But definitely the officers should have seen injuries if the photo was taken minutes before.) Or did she put on lots of makeup in the back of the van after taking the selfie? (What was BL doing all this time?) Would makeup have stayed on as much as she was crying during the Moab stop? If not, why can't we see those injuries? I know at the time the video was released some people on WS thought they maybe saw red marks on her arm and maybe something on her face but nobody said he/she saw anything like the selfie. And I think it's fair to say some here were primed to very easily see evidence of BL's wrongdoing.

And re: dehydration. Perhaps I'm confused on the timeline after all this time. But weren't B&G stopped by LE pretty much within minutes of leaving the cafe where they spent the day so GP could work on her videos? I understand running out of water was stupid-- for all their purported planning for this van life trip they did seem curiously unprepared for actually traveling and camping out. Staying in hotels and eating in restaurants seemed more their speed. And like B&G, I may not understand how quickly dehydration happens where they were. But if the photo was taken before the traffic stop it seems like GP would have had to leave the cafe where they spent hours and hours already dehydrated. Do cafes in that area not provide water? I know some people raised questions about whether the cafe wanted people taking up tables for the day the way they said they did. So maybe they were unwelcome and water was not available? Couldn't they at least fill up a bottle in the bathroom?
JMO