Gabby Petito

[NotUrsula]

I’d agree with all of this if I hadn’t seen multiple instances of people being all to happy to jump to conclusions on other cases here with no one saying “boo” to them about it. The whole Dugger case springs immediately to mind. I don’t recall anyone saying, “well, maybe it was someone else using his computer”, etc.. (And to be clear, I think Duggar is guilty as can be, and yes the evidence there was more blatant). I’m just wondering what makes this case so much different for people. Yes, there are 101 possible ways this whole thing could have gone down, but realistically only a small handful make sense, and in all of them Brian is at the very least guilty of abandoning Gabby in the park, with death a pretty predictable result.

I'd say you have a point, and I think that the answer is heavily tied up in the "missing white woman" phenomenon, and the role of the press (professional as well as amateur) in that. In Duggar's case, he had already confessed to behavior very close to what he is accused of, so it is more reasonable to believe he is a recidivist, and the FBI *had* charged him with the crime when the story broke, but I think the key point is that photos of his alleged victims were not plastered all over the internet to draw sympathy. While child pornography is not a victimless crime, most of the time the victims do not have a public face, and thus the likelihood of mob incitement is less. Also, it doesn't involve a death, which is key. Look at the Larry Nassar case. Plenty of people defended discounting the testimony of minors, and plenty of others were out for blood, but the victims still grew up and still have lives, and some people think that's a mitigating factor, despite the fact that the victims have been actively tortured by the ongoing hearings in this case for YEARS.

 

[LSUmiss]

I totally disagree with you about his parents.
Regardless of if he lied to them at the beginning, the minute they knew she was missing and her parents, and law enforcement were looking for her they knew he was still not talking and trying to help find her. They had to have known something was up right then.
I can see them wanting to protect their own child, it is a parents instinct. However their behavior is just as bizarre as his. He told them he was going out to go mediate on a Tuesday and they waited until Friday to report him missing. Wouldn't parents who wanted to protect their child so much that they kept their mouth shut about Gabby be insane with worry over him when he didn't return home that same day?
At that point they knew she was missing, wouldn't they be worried about his mental state, what he might do to himself? Why would they wait 3 more days before reporting him missing? No parent in their right mind, who was worried about their child would wait to report them missing for days.
Maybe it's because they knew he wasn't going anywhere to meditate, maybe it's because they knew he was leaving to go on the run and they were giving him time to get far enough away.


Seems when it comes to reporting missing persons Brian's apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Idk, if an attorney advised otherwise & I believed my son, I can certainly see how they could be in denial about it being anything else.

 

[mom2rtk]

I can understand that but why wouldn't you go to the cops the MINUTE she had officially "disappeared" and tell them what you know? I get the fear, the not wanting to be blamed for something you didn't do, etc. but he has brought upon himself the "judge, jury, and executioner" by BEING evasive and unwilling.

If that happened he was definitely in a terrible position, one where he would be looked at quite suspiciously. But if he didn't do it, all he did was make that suspicion a thousand times worse by running. Anyone with an ounce of common sense would know to expect that to be the outcome.

And even if he was acting irrationally because of what he'd just experienced, then his parents could/should have talked some sense into him. I would rather my child be in a police station being questioned than have him run off and potentially kill himself.

 

[LSUmiss]

What I think is interesting is how many ppl can easily put themselves in Gabby’s parents’ shoes & be empathetic but not in Brian’s parents’ position. Curious if it has anything to do with ppl’s own family dynamics. If Brian had been a great kid (as far as they know) his whole life, never in any trouble, with no obvious propensity for violence,
I think it would be very understandable that his parents would have a hard time believing he killed her or anyone if he said he didn’t. So everything they do or don’t do after that if to protect him at all costs especially if an attorney advised them not to cooperate. I think they no better was skipping town or trying to. But, if I thought my child was innocent & in danger of being wrongfully accused & convicted of something. I can’t say that I might not do the same. Human decency & the law aside, my instinct is to protect my child FIRST.

 

[Dentam]

Just saw a report that an underwater dive team has arrived in the area in FL that Brian's parents said he went.

 

[mom2rtk]

What I think is interesting is how many ppl can easily put themselves in Gabby’s parents’ shoes & be empathetic but not in Brian’s parents’ position. Curious if it has anything to do with ppl’s own family dynamics. If Brian had been a great kid (as far as they know) his whole life, never in any trouble, with no obvious propensity for violence,
I think it would be very understandable that his parents would have a hard time believing he killed her or anyone if he said he didn’t. So everything they do or don’t do after that if to protect him at all costs especially if an attorney advised them not to cooperate. I think they no better was skipping town or trying to. But, if I thought my child was innocent & in danger of being wrongfully accused & convicted of something. I can’t say that I might not do the same. Human decency & the law aside, my instinct is to protect my child FIRST.

People whose child is still alive just get less empathy from me than people whose child is missing, presumed, and now confirmed dead. Especially when the one who is still alive is the only one who might be able to help explain what happened.

 

[Sinder]

Idk, if an attorney advised otherwise & I believed my son, I can certainly see how they could be in denial about it being anything else.

I still think keeping quiet when they knew she was considered missing is an awful thing to do. I don't care if an attorney advised them to not talk, it wasn't like people didn't know that they were traveling together. All they had to do was contact her parents and let them know he returned home but Gabby remained.
My guess is they didn't because they didn't believe him and yes they wanted to protect him so they said nothing and let poor Gabby's family go through hell wondering what happened to their daughter.
That also doesn't explain why they waited so long to report him missing? Wouldn't they be worried, whether they believed he was innocent or not, if he had gone missing?
It just doesn't add up.

 

[JimMIA]

Just saw a report that an underwater dive team has arrived in the area in FL that Brian's parents said he went.

They've been there all day. The area is 75% covered with water, and I'm sure has some ponds they can't check on foot.

 

[Sinder]

What I think is interesting is how many ppl can easily put themselves in Gabby’s parents’ shoes & be empathetic but not in Brian’s parents’ position. Curious if it has anything to do with ppl’s own family dynamics. If Brian had been a great kid (as far as they know) his whole life, never in any trouble, with no obvious propensity for violence,
I think it would be very understandable that his parents would have a hard time believing he killed her or anyone if he said he didn’t. So everything they do or don’t do after that if to protect him at all costs especially if an attorney advised them not to cooperate. I think they no better was skipping town or trying to. But, if I thought my child was innocent & in danger of being wrongfully accused & convicted of something. I can’t say that I might not do the same. Human decency & the law aside, my instinct is to protect my child FIRST.

If your child, even an adult, went missing would you wait 3 days to report them missing?
If yes then that goes directly against protecting them, unless of course there was no reason to report anything because you knew they weren't in any danger.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I take things case by case because not all cases are the same. Sometimes there's so much more past known about the persons involved and sometimes there isn't. Sometimes things are figured out and released quicker sometimes not. How can any of us not take different cases differently?

I don't think the issue is so much how many theories we can come up with so long as they don't stray into mob mentality and so long as people are careful with what they say. When I looked at that instagram post the local news brought up I saw another account in Gabby's name made by someone else and it was awful awful awful for the content.

We also don't know if things will be known in the end about Gabby, I'm hoping they do give people closure but it doesn't happen all the time.

There was a local case in my area a few years ago where there was a guy was found in a storage facility with 2 (a newborn and a two year old) of his 6 children dead and his wife who had been dismembered. He told authorities his wife had died in childbirth but he also had said she killed herself. Those things right there is going to have me thinking a different story than Gabby's case. Back to the guy from my area well they never could get a determination of death so he was actually not charged with a connection to her death. To my knowledge it is still unknown what happened if she died in childbirth or if he killed her. He was however sentenced to 9 years in jail for "three felony counts of sexual exploitation of a child, as well as misdemeanor counts of child endangerment and contributing to a child's misconduct. The exploitation charges do not involve Rey's children and instead stem from photos of teenagers found on Rey's phone after he asked law enforcement to look at it for evidence he thought would help him at trial." My feelings on this guy while I couldn't tell you if he was guilty of killing his wife he did try to dispose of her in some way and his character is....if we look at the charges he was charged with and convicted of. The story initially broke as he was found with the two dead children and his wife dismembered. That alone is going to give quite the initial impression.

So different cases different conversations going on.

 

[DLgal]

They've been there all day. The area is 75% covered with water, and I'm sure has some ponds they can't check on foot.

Are dive teams typically brought in to do a general search though? I thought that was reserved for recovery operations when they have a fairly good idea that there is a body down there.

 

[Dentam]

Are dive teams typically brought in to do a general search though? I thought that was reserved for recovery operations when they have a fairly good idea that there is a body down there.

That was my thought as well - that they had reason to believe he was no longer alive.

 

[DLgal]

So now some neighbors have been interviewed saying that the three (mom, dad, and Brian) loaded up their camper and went on a 3 day camping trip at some point after Brian came home and before he was reported missing. That seems odd.

 

[TLSnell1981]

They've been there all day. The area is 75% covered with water, and I'm sure has some ponds they can't check on foot.

Lots of gators. Maybe nothing left to find.

This whole story is so very sad. So many lives affected forever.

 

[Marrila]

So now some neighbors have been interviewed saying that the three (mom, dad, and Brian) loaded up their camper and went on a 3 day camping trip at some point after Brian came home and before he was reported missing. That seems odd.

I read that and it sounds so....let's do things that appear normal. Add this is during the time that GP 's parents are frantic with worry.

A possible more dark reason for the camping? Staging supplies, ditching items...

Or maybe they turned off those darn cell phones, ignored the calls and emails from GP's family, and had family time camping and roasting marshmallows.

 

[LSUmiss]

People whose child is still alive just get less empathy from me than people whose child is missing, presumed, and now confirmed dead. Especially when the one who is still alive is the only one who might be able to help explain what happened.

Yes, in general, I agree. I am just saying if Brian was my child & I fully believed he was innocent, I can’t say what I would do. But, I do know my extinct would be to protect my own child.

 

[LSUmiss]

I still think keeping quiet when they knew she was considered missing is an awful thing to do. I don't care if an attorney advised them to not talk, it wasn't like people didn't know that they were traveling together. All they had to do was contact her parents and let them know he returned home but Gabby remained.
My guess is they didn't because they didn't believe him and yes they wanted to protect him so they said nothing and let poor Gabby's family go through hell wondering what happened to their daughter.
That also doesn't explain why they waited so long to report him missing? Wouldn't they be worried, whether they believed he was innocent or not, if he had gone missing?
It just doesn't add up.

You said it yourself. They wanted to protect their child. I’m saying I get that. Not saying it’s the right thing to do & also admitting that I really don’t what I would do in this situation b/c like I said my instinct is protect my own child.

 

[Dentam]

Yes, in general, I agree. I am just saying if Brian was my child & I fully believed he was innocent, I can’t say what I would do. But, I do know my extinct would be to protect my own child.

And refuse to respond to the family members of your child's fiancé who are frantic with worry about her? Someone who lived with your family prior to this incident? Just seems so crazy to me and lacking in any compassion or basic human decency.

 

[LSUmiss]

If your child, even an adult, went missing would you wait 3 days to report them missing?
If yes then that goes directly against protecting them, unless of course there was no reason to report anything because you knew they weren't in any danger.

I’m saying they might have known he was going on the run & plotted to protect him. That doesn’t necessarily mean they think he did anything but that they’re concerned he will be accused of it.

 

[JimMIA]

Are dive teams typically brought in to do a general search though? I thought that was reserved for recovery operations when they have a fairly good idea that there is a body down there.

Not for general searches usually, especially in fresh water. The problem is that fresh water is often murky and full of silt -- very difficult to see much. In a swampy area like they're searching, there are also a lot of tree roots that obscure both vision and movement.

But this is not a usual case, and we also don't know what the water conditions are where they are searching.