Lawyers release photos of Gabby Petito's injuries, say police ignored abuse
The law firm representing Gabby Petito's family has released photos that show her face bloodied, claiming officers should've taken action before her murder.
The photo released by the Parker and McConkie law firm was found on Petito's cell phone and was taken in the back of her van in Moab, Utah on Aug. 12, 2021. The photo was taken just before her stop by Moab City Police after a bystander witnessed a domestic dispute between her and fiancé Brian Laundrie.
Petito had been on a cross-country trip with Laundrie and was reported missing by her family on Sept. 11, 2021. Her body was found near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming on Sept. 19, 2021. Her death was ruled a homicide due to strangulation.
The attorney representing the Petito family in the complaint said that during the stop, she attempted to tell the Moab Police officers about the injury, but the assault and injury were ignored.
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Laundrie was the lone person of interest in the homicide investigation. His body was found on Oct. 20, 2021 after he committed suicide with a gun.
"The officers ignored this critical evidence and did nothing to follow up on, or to further investigate, Gabby’s report that Brian had violently grabbed her face and cut her cheek," Parker and McConkie law firm said in a press release.
The Petito family have supported the passage of a law to require use of training and procedures to identity and prevent similar tragedies in the future by using a lethality assessment.
"Our daughter, Gabby, died as a result of intimate partner violence that could have and should have been identified by law enforcement using the lethality assessment," Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, said in a statement. "We believe that if the lethality assessment had been properly used in her situation, together with the recommended support and resources, Gabby would still be alive today.“
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Gabby Petito update: Newly released photos show bloodied face
