Gabby Petito’s parents are fighting for her respect.
Their 22-year-old daughter was tragically killed by her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, during a cross-country trip in the National Park in 2021.
After her death, it turns out that Gabby was a victim of domestic violence.
Gabby’s Parents Work to End Domestic Violence
Instagram | Gabby Petito
Since then, her parents Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt have been on a mission to help victims of domestic violence.
In the days leading up to her death by strangulation, Gabby and Brian were stopped by police officers in Utah following an anonymous tip about a woman being hit by a man.
During the traffic stop, the 22- and 23-year-old men were separated and questioned by police.
Utah law enforcement officials separated Brian and Gabby for one night, but did nothing in terms of a domestic violence investigation.
Gabby’s parents did an independent investigation into the traffic stop and found that the Moab City PD made some inadvertent mistakes. They filed a $50 million lawsuit against the city of Moab.
Joe Petito & Nichole Schmidt Help Pass DV Legislation In Utah
Petito and Schmidt recently attended a legal hearing in Utah on Monday, January 30.
Utah state senators voted unanimously in favor of a proposed “Death Evaluation Protocol” that would require law enforcement throughout Utah to ask a series of 11 questions in situations where they suspect intimate partner violence.
According to Associated Presspolice will ask questions about prior threats, access to firearms and history of behavior such as strangulation, jealousy or snooping.
Gabby Petito
The “Death Assessment Protocol” was first piloted in Maryland twenty years ago.
A number of law enforcement departments in Utah now use the assessment protocol; however, it is not a statewide mandate.
Petito shared his thoughts on the proposal.
“If it had been used, I believe he would still be here today,” he said during a press conference.
“With this bill, we’re trying to narrowly target the biggest problem we have right now in this state with intimate partner violence,” said Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson. “That’s to prevent intimate partner murder.”
The Senate bill also seeks to create a law enforcement database for response to fatal searches.
Instagram / Gabby Petito
This will allow officers to access information on previous fatality assessments conducted by any department across the state to better understand and protect victims.
As previously stated, on August 12, 2021, a domestic violence call involving the couple was made to Moab authorities, and the couple was withdrawn.
The call resulted in no arrests even though Utah state law mandates an arrest or citation in domestic violence incidents.
Moab, Utah Traffic Stopped Days Before Gabby’s Murder
F.B.I
F.B.I
Fox News Digital first reported a domestic violence call that included allegations that Laundrie slapped and hit Gabby; however, both denied their version of events to responding officers.
Laundrie has a cut on her cheek and Gabby has a mark on her face.
According to the report of the officer who responded that day, “The driver of the van, a male, had some type of altercation with the female, Gabbie.”
The report continued, “The man tried to distance himself by telling Gabbie to go for a walk to calm down, she didn’t want to break up with him, and started slapping her. He grabbed her face and pushed her back as he pressed her and the van, he tried to lock her out and succeeded except for the driver’s door, he opened that door and forced her into the vehicle before it drove away.”
In addition, a responding officer wrote that he believed “it was reported that the male was observed to have assaulted the female,” but instead wrote, “no one reported that the male assaulted the female.”
Gabby looks upset in the video.
Now, an independent investigation into the August 12 incident has found an “unintentional error.”
The outside investigation also offered some recommendations on how the Moab police department should move forward.
The investigation included interviews with both the officers involved and the city’s acting police chief and reviewed incident reports, body camera video and other evidence.
The 102-page investigative report states, “The independent agency’s investigative report found that the officers who responded to the incident made several inadvertent errors stemming from the fact that the officers failed to cite Ms. Petito for domestic violence. The City acknowledges that these findings may raise questions, and the issue is explored extensively in the investigative report.”
It continued, “The report recommends improvements to both Moab City Police Department policies and training. These recommendations include: providing additional training in domestic violence investigations, as well as additional legal training to ensure officers understand state laws and status; conducting overall policy reviews; conducting software reviews; and strengthening the review process for incident reports.”
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
