Found Deceased WY - Gabrielle ‘Gabby’ Petito, 22, Grand Teton National Park, 25 Aug 2021 #63

[TheGardener]

Since the day BL was reported missing, I haven’t gotten Joran Andreas Petrus van der Sloot off my mind.

Can I like this 10 million times? Yes, I can.

 

[AtlantaBourne]

Agr

I guess if he had to pick somewhere to hide or give the appearance of hiding he picked two great places. Both are huge and impossible to search thoroughly. Personally I think he is alive, but not in either of those two places. I think he headed somewhere in the lower US. Our winters are nothing compared to back east. Sadly I don't think he will be found very soon and fear this may drag on. JMO

JMOHHO
I keep thinking of the bike ride a neighbor reported seeing of BL & RL.
Total speculation but BL may have taken the 36 mile bicycle ride late on Sept 9th to Ft. Meyers, FL, boarded a ferry at 7am on Sept 10th for about $200 round trip w/the bike & taken a 3.5 hr cruise to Key West arriving at 10:30 am. There he finds over 100 mile stretch of keys/islands, parks, campsites, seasonal part-time jobs available at restaurants/bars jet ski rentals fishing docks marinas etc. The FL Everglades to the north. It never gets cold there. AND in the exact opposite direction of where most people think he's headed.

 

[Arkay]

I would have the utmost sympathy for the Laundrie parents if they had handled this with more compassion and with some sense of being mortified at Brian’s actions.

Brian’s an adult and as far as we know the Laundrie parents have not killed anyone. Maybe they were just living a completely normal life and now their son is accused of murder and may well be dead. That is something for which I typically would grieve for them.

Dylan Klebold (one of the Columbine killers) had a mother who was tormented by what her son had done. I think I remember that she said she had NO CLUE that he was capable of this and she’s spent years giving talks about it. She feels so guilty and obviously she lost a son too. She was very compassionate to the families of the victims.

I may be the only one here, but I have a grown daughter who has done some things that caused me great shame. She is the opposite of how she was raised and I don’t know why. I did call the police on her once when she stole something. This is hard to confess because I’m just the most regular law-abiding person and I thought I’d taught her well.

If God forbid she murdered someone, which I’m sure she wouldn’t, but if she did then YES I would have turned her in to LE. And lived all my life in mortification.

I do have sympathy for the Laundries on the level that this may have caught them completely unaware, but their subsequent actions, silence and lack of kindness to Gabby’s family have killed me from the start.

I read a book called Far From the Tree to try to understand why my daughter is so different from how she was raised. It was helpful.

 

[mmeynstyn]

I have a question for those of you familiar with physical DV. Gabby claimed to have hit Brian first during their scuffle and also said she hit him when the police pulled them over. She also said Brian did not hit her but grabbed her face and pushed her back. She was very clear that Brian was wanting her to calm down. I believe her.

Is it normal for victims of long term DV to initiate violence with the one they fear? Or is it more likely that Brian's violence was new? I have no experience with DV and this is an honest question.

To be clear, I in no way put any blame on Gabby. I'm just trying to understand as I find this confusing.

You ask about physical abuse but let's remember she was with him for months/more than a year. I think the abuse may have elevated over time from a mental-type of abuse (and this is total MOO based on my experience with mental-type abuse). The controlling partner may abuse their partner through isolation, verbal abuse (repeated putting them down), threats to leave them alone in the middle of no where, etc. (all forms of control IMO).

One of my abusive situations was when I had to go to the bathroom and my boyfriend locked the door of the bedroom and wouldn't let me out. Yes, we were in an argument before and he refused to let me leave until the argument had concluded. I was beside myself all of the sudden realizing that I couldn't get out....I kept trying to reason with him but I finally just agreed with everything he said to get the argument over. He never hit me....so, I am sure some who say he was not abusive. All I know is, the person being controlled may feel frustrated/trapped at the inability to reason with the abuser. I experienced it and saw that in Gabby. IMO, She was probably already stressed to get her social media wrapped up for the day because he was all over her like stink on "you know what" to go hiking. Gosh, she was trying to get it done, then he threatens to leave her. Over months and years of this controlling behavior and her inability to reason with him, it was a pressure cooker. We witnessed Gabby's release of pressure through her emotional state and her admitted physical actions. She shouldn't have been slapping or whatever she was doing, and she knew it, that is probably one reason she admitted as such to the cops. The controller continued to control and it seems we may now know how he finally released his pressure.

 

[LietKynes]

Good Morning WS Buds!
We have a worse problem than speculating about the past whys and wherefores of this case. That cud can be further chewed during trial.
We have a guy who is capable of throttling the life out of someone he claimed to love for reasons unknown to anybody but him...secreted somewhere and protected by someone.
Should his handlers lose control of him and he resurrects his all consuming desire to roam, he's out of their control, out of the general public's control, ripe and ready to shop for another convert to the cult of Brian. Someone else's daughter. Heck, if it worked once...
This guy needs to be caught - fast.
He's got a cumulative self-control problem. He's content to whack somebody when the whining and complaining annoy him. He's also fully capable of strangling someone once he's reached the end of his tether.
The cause of death gave us more insight into what's rolling around BL's fevered brain. You NEVER want your or anyone else's daughter being talked into another road trip with this guy. The internet can be a great met and greet world. It can also be a diabolical blind in which murder crouches waiting.
If LE doesn't have this mindset, they had better hop to making it the main thrust of their investigation.
MOOing.

Saving this excellent post.
Agreed about the urgency to find Brian.
If this drags on ... I fear some of the urgency will be lost and he could victimize another young lady.
Imo he is very well hidden and his parents -- and maybe the family lawyer (SB) -- know this.
Imo.

 

[tlcya]

I'm curious to see just how many of you think BL is still alive. To see how split this group is on dead/alive

personally, I think he is alive and has or is receiving help to stay hidden. I don't know if I think he is outdoors roughing it or tucked away in some hotel or basement playing video games. Either way, I am sure his mental health is suffering. If his personality type is what I suspect he needs validation and attention very badly and is receiving neither since this all started. I don't think he would harm himself, although I do believe he would claim he's going to, I don't see him actually doing it. Again, not aligned with the personality type I suspect he has.

You should start a poll thread, because it is very interesting hearing what everyone else thinks.

 

[nocommoncents]

Their behavior tells me that they know he's alive. Unless they are really unfeeling people who do not care if their child is dead or alive...JMO

I don't think we can know anything about their behavior with such a small view of it. They could be inside with severe depression symptoms and using yard work as a method of getting out of the house since they really can't. JMO

 

[justaparent]

Has there been any update on the search for BL in the reserve? Are LE even going out there anymore?

I hope they’ve given up on that. The only thing it achieved was lots of training for LE. I don’t believe he was ever there.

JMO

 

[dacjess]

In the press conference he said he couldn't confirm if it was manual or with a ligature. Its at the 17:15 mark....asked by Elieen Lehpamer . Its rather odd he said manual to CNN

Maybe because he wasn’t planning to speak on it but that information was released on Twitter immediately after the PC? So it was now publicly available? Just speculation.

 

[customCF]

I think this bench design feels cold, because it's just pure metal so far. Perhaps the final design will be better. I think a green-space with a pretty bench, flowers, maybe a fountain or bird bath, would make an ideal memorial space.

Gabby's parents are assisting with the design apparently.
Architect working with Petito family to create memorial bench for Gabby

 

[Claire182]

Just a question, now the COD has been announced has CaL released any statement? Since she has previously done an interview I would have perhaps expected some form of statement in relation to gabby and her awful COD IMO just got me thinking maybe she now has her own lawyer especially with the death threats etc.

 

[Claire182]

Gabby's parents are assisting with the design apparently.
Architect working with Petito family to create memorial bench for Gabby

I like it because it’s arty and we know gabby was artistic, it’s different and has her butterflies.

 

[LeeJay55]

Unfortunately it’s not that simple. Our oldest daughter was an abusive relationship, both physical and emotional. We live in Texas she was in California, it took two years for her to leave him. Before they moved to Cali, she had a very successful high-paying career, very independent. She came from a home with two loving parents who never fight. Something happened to her psyche/mind, she justified, blamed herself, it was like she was in a

If only he would have left her stranded. Maybe then she could have went somewhere and called her dad to come help. We'll never know. MOO Speculation

He wouldnt.leave her anywhere!
She was the best thing that he could dream of!
How did he end up with her?
I think his fear was that she would.leave him!

 

[cady]

Almost like those protesters did with CaL. They told her they'd leave if she came out and talked and she did.
The parents either need someone asking the right questions or something similar to happen, Maybe they'd say something that would help.
ChL did seem to me like he may have considered saying something when mowing this morning. MOO

The weakest link is Cassie, then Chris IMO. I think that Roberta is a hopeless cause and is totally trusting of their charming attorney. jmo

 

[ediethedog]

whether manual or ligature it is still strangulation by a human.

I thought I read some where in previous pages that he told CNN that it was by hands /thumbs.....I haven't watched the interview but it seems odd if that is correct ...as he was asked about method and wouldn't or couldn't confirm. I realise that its strangulation by human but thats not what the question was.
Sorry but its all so weird to an Australian, the coroner going on CNN and hosting a media Q and A.
Im so unnerved by this whole coroner and media relationship, it's just not something that happens here .

 

[FindingJoLee]

Good Morning WS Buds!
We have a worse problem than speculating about the past whys and wherefores of this case. That cud can be further chewed during trial.
We have a guy who is capable of throttling the life out of someone he claimed to love for reasons unknown to anybody but him...secreted somewhere and protected by someone.
Should his handlers lose control of him and he resurrects his all consuming desire to roam, he's out of their control, out of the general public's control, ripe and ready to shop for another convert to the cult of Brian. Someone else's daughter. Heck, if it worked once...
This guy needs to be caught - fast.
He's got a cumulative self-control problem. He's content to whack somebody when the whining and complaining annoy him. He's also fully capable of strangling someone once he's reached the end of his tether.
The cause of death gave us more insight into what's rolling around BL's fevered brain. You NEVER want your or anyone else's daughter being talked into another road trip with this guy. The internet can be a great met and greet world. It can also be a diabolical blind in which murder crouches waiting.
If LE doesn't have this mindset, they had better hop to making it the main thrust of their investigation.
MOOing.

His handlers may want to be be on the lookout for their own safety....he does not require tools.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

Really interesting, thanks!

dbm

 

[kittythehare]

dbm

 

[LinneaE]

I believe he is alive. We don't know what equipment he had in the Mustang when he went to the reserve. His parents only reported him as have a backpack but no one knows if he had a tent, food or any other equipment in the car. He (or his parents) could have staged other equipment in other locations as well.

Likely that he was following news and social reports about the search for Gabby. If he saw the video from the van life bloggers that showed the location of the van at the dispersed camping site he would have known that the discovery of Gabby's remains wouldn't be far behind.

 

[nhmemorymaker]

Yes - that indicates the hyoid bone was broken. IME, one of the reasons strangulation is such a common form of DV (even if not unto death), is that the strangler wants to immediately silence the victim. The hyoid bone and its cartilage (breaking/ripping either is a sign of strangulation) are next to the voice box and the strangler grabs the neck with their thumbs just above the voicebox (larynx). Problem is, if they let go, the victim naturally starts screaming or yelling. This is not the most efficient method of strangling someone as MMA fans will point out, but the average person doesn't know how to efficiently strangle someone and there's no evidence that Brian was into MMA.

Boa constrictors are not native to Bridger-Teton NP, either. Bears do not strangle (or have opposable thumbs with which to do so). We don't know the full details of the report, but it's possible, even likely, that there was damage to the cervical vertebrae from the other fingers.

Biological anthropologists have written quite a few articles about adrenalin and hands (if people go into the "fight" mode of flight or fight, the adrenalin and the nerves in the hand and wrists are highly activated). In anger management and behavioral therapy for people who violently act out, learning to keep the hands relaxed and to step away (flight, not fight) are key ingredients. Many people in anger management classes say that their hands took on a life of their own and "just did" what they did, they don't remember any conscious decision to hit/slap their partner or their child. Therapy focuses on mindfulness, deep breathing, hand relaxation, posture relaxation, amidst various stressful stimuli. Such people are often told to avoid all triggers (if social anxiety is an issue, then either get medication to treat it, or avoid social situations as much as possible).

This information strengthens my opinion of no premeditation.
The increasing sizzle they were living was going both ways....
I could easily see the Moab incident finally taking her over the edge. To leave.