The world was obsessed by the missing person case of Gabby Petito in September 2021. Unfortunately, it did not have the happy ending everyone was rooting for. Petito’s remains were found in Wyoming, and her death was ruled a homicide. Her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, died by suicide weeks later and left a note admitting responsibility for her murder.
Gabby Petito’s parents now believe that Brian Laundrie’s parents knew about his crime and did nothing. Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt are suing Chris and Roberta Laundrie because of this. Much hangs on whether a letter written by Roberta Laundrie to her son is allowed to be used as evidence.
The letter was first brought to the public’s attention in an interview with Pat Reilly, Petito and Schmidt’s attorney. “There’s some pretty extreme things she said in [the letter] that, without having the letter here to quote it I don’t want to say, but I will simply tell you that there’s some pretty extreme things that were contained within that letter,” Reilly said.
Reilly attempted to get the letter as part of the discovery process of the civil suit. “The request certainly would also include the note that Roberta Laundrie wrote to Brian Laundrie in which she offered to bring a shovel to help bury the body,” the court documents say.
The letter remains in the possession of the Laundries' lawyer, Steven Bertolino. It was originally found in Brian Laundrie’s backpack when he was found dead. It was released to his family by the FBI.
“The FBI gave it to me and I still have it. Don’t get caught up in the hype. Context is everything,” Bertolino said.
Both sides agree the letter does not have dates on it. The Laundries’ take this a step further and claim the letter predates the tragic situation with the young couple.
“I have the letter in question but its contents are personal between a mother and a son. The letter has nothing to do with this case,” Bertolino said. He believes Reilly is reaching with their request to include it as evidence.
“Think it through. Do you really think such a sentiment would be casually let go by the FBI if what Pat Reilly wants you to think were true? It’s sensationalism to bolster his case,” Bertolino claims.
Time will tell if the letter is released or not so the public can decide for itself what exactly the Laundries knew and when. One possibility is it is included in discovery for the civil case. The federal government could also release it through the Freedom of Information Act. Another option is unlikely but possible: The Laundries could release it themselves.
