Gabby Petito’s Parents Sue Moab Police for Not Protecting Her Before Death
Gabby Petito’s parents are pursuing more legal action.
The Petito family filed a $50 million lawsuit against Moab Police Department over a year after Gabby’s body was recovered in September 2021 for failing to protect the YouTuber in August 2021, when officers attended to a domestic disturbance between her and fiancé Brian Laundrie.
“They relied on these officers to respect the law, to serve and protect their daughter,” attorney Brian Stewart of the Parker & McConkie law firm told E! News on Nov. 3. “However, when it became evident that the cops involved did not fully examine the threat she faced and did not follow the law, they recognised they owed Gabby to demand accountability and reform.”
The family did not pursue a case “lightly,” Stewart added.
Stewart stated that Gabby’s death was preventable. “Gabby would be alive if the officers had protected her and followed the law.”
Moab denied Gabby’s death in the complaint. “The attorneys for the Petito family seem to suggest that somehow our officers could see into the future based on this single interaction,” a Nov. 3 city statement stated, via CNN. “On Aug. 12, no one could have foretold the tragedy that would occur weeks later and hundreds of miles away, and the City of Moab will aggressively defend against this lawsuit.”
After Moab police released body cam footage in October 2021 of officers reacting to a Gabby-Brian dispute, the lawsuit was filed. Officers encouraged the pair to spend the night apart without arresting them.
