![]() “If he’s manipulative, that doesn't mean we have the legal right to keep them apart, or just arrest him based off that.”ĭomestic incidents can sometimes dominate a police officer’s day - and most of the time, they don’t end in tragedy, says Katie Hood, CEO of One Love, an organization that seeks to educate young people about unhealthy relationships. “It’s not that we didn’t think he was manipulative, but we have to worry about the safety, and not the psychology of it,” she told the Deseret News. Toxic, yes, but posing a physical threat to either of them, no. 12, told the Deseret News in a previous interview the relationship did not seem unsafe. Her response was, I would say, pretty normal,” she told the Deseret News.Īrches park ranger Melissa Hulls, the lone female officer who responded to the call on Aug. ![]() The contrast between the two - Laundrie calm, soft spoken and laughing, Petito unable to control her emotions and at one point hyperventilating - is also a red flag.īut Sollis says that Petito’s body language and behavior is also typical for someone experiencing an “emotional situation.” She doesn’t want to leave Laundrie and places much of the blame on herself. “Some of the behaviors that Gabby presents when they are engaging with her are common for somebody who’s being abused,” says Liz Sollis with the Utah Domestic Violence Coalition. Moab Police Chief Bret Edge has taken a leave of absence for unspecified reasons under the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the city says an “unaffiliated law enforcement agency” will launch an investigation into how officers handled the call.Įxperts say that while it’s easy to critique the footage, the situation is emblematic of the complex relationship between law enforcement and domestic abuse. Moab police’s handling of the situation has received widespread criticism, as many wondered how they could place Laundrie, who towered over his finance, as the victim and Petito the aggressor. 19, Petito’s body was found on the outskirts of Grand Teton National Park.Ī focal point in the case, the incident outside of Arches National Park, has been critical to the public’s understanding of Petito and Laundrie’s relationship. The two later reunited and left Moab together, passing through Salt Lake City on their way to Wyoming. Laundrie was taken to a hotel, and Petito drove off with the van. Police would later deem Petito the aggressor, but did not pursue charges. but then it got more strange as the vehicle was about to drive off.” I didn't see anything like him taking after her or hitting her, or vice versa, it was kind of light and they were almost kind of laughing and I wasn't sure whether they were just joking around. trying to close off the passenger side of the vehicle and close things up. “It was unclear what was going on for me, but it did seem like he was. “That’s a good question,” the witness says. Pratt asks the man whether he saw Laundrie hit Petito. Pratt then walks over to speak with Petito, who admits Laundrie hit her but then quickly shifts the blame onto herself, telling officers she slapped Laundrie, and was hitting his arm as he tried to pull over the van.Īfter speaking again with Laundrie, Pratt calls a witness - not the initial 911 caller, although the witness does tell Pratt he did confer with that person. So, I was just trying to push her away,” Laundrie responds. She gets really worked up, and when she does she swings and she had her cell phone in her hand. “I, I don’t have time to defend myself by sitting here. But in the video released Thursday, Pratt is clear from his first interaction with Laundrie that they are responding to a call that he says involved a “male hitting a female and the two of them getting in this vehicle and driving off.” In previously released footage from the Moab police department, it was unclear whether that information was conveyed to responding officers. He proceeded to hit her, hopped in the car, and they drove off.” Police initially responded to the incident after a witness called 911, reporting Laundrie was “slapping the girl. he grabbed me with his nail, I definitely have a cut right here, when I touch it, it burns.” ![]() “To be honest I hit him first,” Petito responds, before telling Pratt “He grabbed my face, I guess, he didn't like, hit me in the face, he didn't punch me in the face or anything. ‘I can still hear her voice’: Arches park ranger warned Gabby Petito her relationship with Brian Laundrie seemed ‘toxic’.The latest updates from the Gabby Petito missing woman case.Moab Police Chief Bret Edge takes leave of absence, city confirms.
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