BREAKING NEWS: Laundrie family attorney reacts to news Gabby Petito was strangled
Petito's remains were out in the Wyoming wilderness for three to four weeks, coroner says
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Two apparent protesters appeared to try to confront Chris and Roberta Laundrie at their North Port home just after 8:30 p.m. Tuesday, banging on the door repeatedly.
One person from the pair, a man, could be heard shouting, “Come on, dirty Laundries,” “Come on, you guys like to strangle people,” “We’ll be back,” and “Speak up soon.”
After they left, Chris Laundrie briefly stepped into the screened section twice, including one time when he appeared to lock the door.
Minutes later, a vehicle honked its horn for several seconds as it passed the home. Police arrived shortly thereafter.
Earlier Tuesday, a Teton County coroner announced Gabby Petito died of “manual strangulation/ throttling.” Brian Laundrie remains a fugitive.
Brian Laundrie's lawyer, Steven Bertolino, called Gabby Petito's death a "tragedy" on Tuesday after Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue said that her homicide was caused by "manual strangulation."
Petito's remains were found on Sept. 19 in Wyoming's Bridger-Teton National Forest about three to four weeks after she was killed, Dr. Blue said.
Her former fiancé, Brian Laundrie, returned home to North Port, Florida, on Sept. 1 in Gabby's white van and disappeared on Sept. 13. He is a person of interest in Gabby's death and is wanted for alleged debit card fraud.
NORTH PORT, Fla. – Some of the nation’s top expert forensic pathologists are sounding off after Tuesday’s news that Gabby Petito died as a result of "manual strangulation" and had been left in the Wyoming wilderness for an estimated three to four weeks before she was recovered, with one explaining how medical professionally likely reached their conclusions.
Dr. Cyril Wecht has been involved in some of the country’s most high-profile death investigations, including those involving President John F. Kennedy and JonBenét Ramsey. He spoke to Fox News Digital on Tuesday, immediately following Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue’s press conference and the office’s subsequent announcement that Petito died from "death by manual strangulation/throttling."
The Wyoming coroner who conducted Gabby Petito’s autopsy briefly alluded to domestic violence during a Tuesday afternoon news conference in which he said at the start he would avoid going into detail about the investigation, citing state law.
"Unfortunately, this is one of many deaths around the country of people who are involved in domestic violence," Dr. Brent Blue said during a question and answer period. "And it's unfortunate that these other deaths to not get as much coverage as this one."
The remark came in response to a local radio host who asked him what it was like as a small-town official to play a central role in a high-profile homicide case that’s garnered national attention for more than a month.
Fox Nation host and former Fulton County, Georgia, special prosecutor Nancy Grace offered her analysis on ‘America Reports’ Tuesday of Wyoming authorities' declaration that the cause of death for Gabrielle Petito - a Long Island woman who was on a trip through the Mountain West with her boyfriend - was homicide caused by strangulation.
Teton County Coroner Brent Blue announced Tuesday that Petito's remains had been left decomposing in the wilderness for several weeks, but that more specific details were restricted from the public by Wyoming state law.
"I think that is very significant we are learning the cause of death, and the fact that it is a strangulation in my mind even more so implicates Brian Laundrie," Grace said.
Duane Chapman, better known by Dog the Bounty Hunter, released a statement on the results of Gabby Petito's autopsy.
“The coroner’s statement has established a timeline that looks worse for Brian Laundrie. His continued evasion of law enforcement makes him look guilty. His best decision now would be to turn himself in,” said Chapman. “I can’t fathom how Brian’s parents can live with themselves after how they’ve stonewalled the Petito family. They need to be doing more to signal Brian to stop running."
NORTH PORT, Fla. – Gabby Petito died from strangulation, Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue revealed during a Tuesday news briefing, weeks after the FBI uncovered her remains at Bridger-Teton National Forest north of Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
Blue gave the manner of death last month as homicide. Brian Laundrie, her former fiance and the only person of interest publicly identified in connection with her death, hasn't been seen since Sept. 13 and is the subject of a federal warrant for alleged bank card fraud.
The 22-year-old Petito's remains were out in the Wyoming wilderness for three to four weeks, Brent said, without going into detail about the potential impact that had on the autopsy.
"We hereby find the cause and manner of death to be, the cause, death by strangulation, and manner is homicide," Blue said. "By Wyoming state statute, no other information will be released about the autopsy."
Laundrie family lawyer Steven Bertolino released a statement after an autopsy determined Gabby Petito was strangled.
“Gabby Petito’s death at such a young age is a tragedy," Bertolino said. "While Brian Laundrie is currently charged with the unauthorized use of a debit card belonging to Gabby, Brian is only considered a person of interest in relation to Gabby Petito’s demise. At this time Brian is still missing and when he is located we will address the pending fraud charge against him.”
Teton County, Wyoming, coroner Brent Blue on Tuesday "will be addressing the cause and manner of death" during a virtual press conference regarding the final autopsy report for deceased Gabby Petito, officials told Fox News' Jeremy Copas.
Staff are now outside city hall in North Port, Fla., removing a Gabby Petito memorial that had been set up there, according to Fox News Claudia Kelly-Bazan.
The workers are putting everything in boxes and loading it onto city trucks, while Petito's family is expected to go through everything to choose what they may want to keep.
The tribute will eventually be replaced with a permanent steel bench memorial that is being constructed by a man from Indiana, Fox News reported over the weekend.
Gabby Petito in Aug. 12 police bodycam footage. (Moab PD)
A private investigator, who recently visited the Wyoming site where Gabby Petito’s remains were discovered, speculated that the Teton County coroner may reveal that the woman died from asphyxiation after viewing the bodycam video with Utah police.
Petito’s death has been ruled a homicide, but there were no other details about what factors lead to her death. Brent Blue, the coroner, called for a 12:30 p.m. MT virtual press conference today where it is believed that the cause of death will be identified.
Jason Jensen, a Salt Lake City-based investigator, told Fox News Digital that he believes that the cause of death could very well be asphyxiation, based on Petito’s body language in the Aug. 12 bodycam footage from Moab, Utah.
Petito told police that Brian Laundrie, her fiancé, grabbed her face during a domestic dispute.
“I wouldn’t be surprised that it’s manual strangulation,” he claimed. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s choked her before. Any victim that’s been choked before—their natural reaction is to lower their chin to their clavicle to prevent that hand from going around their throat.”
Last month, Blue determined Petito was a homicide victim, but did not disclose a cause of death. Petito was traveling cross-country in a Ford transit van with Laundrie when she went missing.
Laundrie, 23, returned home to North Port, Florida, on Sept. 1 in the van without Petito.
He is wanted on debit card fraud charges and is also a person of interest in the homicide of Petito.
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Teton County, Wyoming, coroner Brent Blue today will hold a virtual press conference regarding the final autopsy report for deceased Gabby Petito, officials said Monday.
The FBI on Sept. 19 discovered Petito's remains at a dispersed campground in the Bridger-Teton National Forest.
Blue later identified the remains and ruled Petito's death a homicide in his preliminary autopsy report.
The press conference will be held at 12:30 p.m. MT and is limited to members of the press, according to a Teton County spokesperson.
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