“Moab still doesn’t get it,” Joseph Petito said in a statement. “The case has never been about money. […] It has always been about seeking accountability and fighting for change that will save lives.”
The father of Gabby Petito has responded to the Moab Police Department’s motion to dismiss the family’s wrongful death lawsuit.
In a recent filing, attorneys for the department characterized Petito’s 2021 death as “an undeniable sorrow,” but suggested that the family should not be seeking compensation from the agency or through Utah’s courts.
“Petito’s murder is an undeniable sorrow,” Moab attorneys wrote. “[Brian] Laundrie’s crime was undisputedly depraved. But the judicial system is not a substitute for a GoFundMe campaign.”
Joseph Petito has since responded, saying that the case is not—and never has been—about money.
“Moab still doesn’t get it,” Petito said in a statement. “The case has never been about money. […] It has always been about seeking accountability and fighting for change that will save lives.”
“When law enforcement fails to follow the law, fails to protect, and refuses to learn from its mistakes, like the Moab Police Department did, it puts us all at risk,” he said.
The wrongful death lawsuit centers on body-camera footage and eyewitness accounts of the Moah Police Department’s encounter with Laundrie and Petito.
An eyewitness had called law enforcement after seeing Laundrie “slapping his girlfriend,” prompting officers to approach the couple outside of Arches National Park. But, after conducting a cursory investigation, Petito was deemed the “primary aggressor,” and neither of the two were arrested or taken into custody.
Laundrie was, however, provided with an escort to a hotel designated for domestic abuse victims.
One of the officers involved, says The New York Post, later admitted that Laundrie appeared to constitute an “emotional threat” to Petito, describing the man as having “more red flags than a Chinese communist rally.”
The Moab Police Department has continued to deny allegations of wrongdoing, seeking dismissal as “a matter of established Utah law.”
“Moab’s police department did not cause Petito’s engagement to Laundrie, her decision to remain with him, her decision to continue driving to Wyoming, or Laundrie’s criminal conduct weeks later,” the department wrote, with the latter clause referring to Laundrie’s murder of Petito.
The Moab Police Department broadly contended that its officers’ actions fell within the scope of their official duties, and that the agency is therefore entitled to immunity against the family’s civil claim.
Earlier this week, the Petito family filed a legal response to Moab’s motion to dismiss, saying that their claims are protected by the Utah Constitution and asking that the department’s immunity defense be declared untenable.
“Doing so will return Utah law to its original understanding and restore to those within this state the protections intended by Utah’s founders,” said the Parker & McConkie law firm, which is representing the family in their wrongful death claim.
Sources
Gabby Petito’s dad fires back at Utah police for ‘infuriating’ claim defending 2021 traffic stop
Gabby Petito’s father responds to Moab police’s attempt to dismiss wrongful death lawsuit
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