Brian Laundrie Family Lawyer Says His Parents Will Not Be Implicated as Gabby Petito's Family Hints More Individuals Will Be Charged
The attorney for the family of Brian Laundrie believes that Laundrie's parents would not be charged with any crimes in connection with Gabby Petito's killing.
Attorney Steven Bertolino told Insider on Wednesday that he has "no reason to believe" that Laundrie's parents, Chris and Roberta, would be charged with any crimes concerning "this case." Bertolino's comments came a day after a Florida medical examiner revealed that Laundrie died by suicide.
According to Neama Rahmani, the president of the firm West Coast Trial Lawyers, prosecutors would need to find evidence that Laundrie's parents "knew or should have known" that their son killed his fiancee to charge them "with accessory after the fact."
Questions surrounding the timeline of events between Laundrie's parents telling authorities they were going to search for their son and the discovery of his belongings have also been raised by many people.
Rahmani said if the elder Laundries did lie to law enforcement like leading them "on a wild goose chase to get their son a head start, that's a problem," as they could be charged with making false statements.
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Attorney of Gabby Petito's Family Says The YouTuber's Family Is 'Waiting' for More People to Be Charged
Following the medical examiner's announcement about Brian Laundrie's autopsy on Tuesday, Gabby Petito's family attorney said that prosecutors were considering charging more individuals in the case.
In a statement, attorney Richard Stafford said that Petito's family was asked not to make any comments and let the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) continue their investigation.
He noted that the family "was also asked to wait for the United States Attorney's Office to make a determination on whether any additional individuals will be charged."
"When that determination is made, we will have a statement," the lawyer said. According to Stafford, the "Schmidt and Petito family" was already aware of "the circumstances surrounding the suicide of the sole suspect" in Gabby Petito's murder.
Lawyer of Brian Laundrie's Family on the FBI Investigation
According to Bertolino, the FBI has all the information it needs to complete the investigation into the disappearance and death of Gabby Petito's fiance.
Bertolino earlier told ABC7 that the FBI informed him that "they have all the information they need for this investigation."
Authorities were hoping that Laundrie's "digital footprint" and phones would provide clues or contain never-before-seen information about his and Gabby Petito's deaths.
North Port Police Department spokesman Josh Taylor earlier said that Laundrie's social media profiles would be included in the investigation.
"Everything that's been gathered in digital information, the digital footprint that's never been revealed that will certainly be a part of [the FBI's] entire case," he noted.
Laundrie's partial skeletal remains were found at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Florida on October 20. The remains were confirmed to belong to him after a "comparison to known dental records."
The autopsy report released on Tuesday said that Laundrie died of a gunshot wound to the head, and the manner of death was suicide.
According to Bertolino, Laundrie owned a gun, and one pistol was missing from the family home after cops told them to turn over all their firearms.
Brian Laundrie was named a person of interest by the North Port police after returning home on September 1 or 10 days before Gabby Petito was reported missing by her family.
Petito disappeared on a cross-country road trip with Laundrie. The couple was traveling to Oregon when the YouTuber stopped communicating with her family in Wyoming in late August.
On September 19, Gabby Petito's body was found at the Spread Creek Dispersed Campground near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.
A Teton County, Wyoming coroner said she was strangled to death by a "human being," and the manner of death was homicide.
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Written by: Joshua Summers
WATCH: What's Next After Brian Laundrie's Death Ruled a Suicide? - From WFLA News Channel 8