Families of Gabby Petito, Brian Laundrie ‘reluctantly’ reach settlement to avoid civil trial
The families of Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie avoided a civil trial later this year when they “reluctantly” reached a secretive legal settlement Wednesday.
The legal battle ended following a mediation session, lawyers for both sides confirmed, according to reports.
The agreement comes a week after it was revealed Laundrie’s parents admitted in a deposition they were worried about the young woman when their son called them in a panic.
Petito’s parents and step-parents filed a civil lawsuit in Florida against the Laundries and their lawyer, alleging they were aware of Gabby’s slaying but stayed mum about the case.
���After a long day of mediation, a confidential agreement has been reached … to which all parties reluctantly agreed in order to avoid further legal expenses and prolonged personal conflict,” Petito family lawyer Pat Reilly said in a statement, per WFLA.
“Our hope is to close this chapter of our lives to allow us to move on and continue to honor the legacy of our beautiful daughter, Gabby.”
Laundries’ lawyer Steve Bertolino also said he and his clients “looked forward to putting this matter behind us,” CNN reported.
A trial was scheduled for May before Wednesday’s deal was struck.
Petito’s loved ones reported their 22-year-old daughter missing on Sept. 11, 2021 – 10 days after Laundrie, 23, already reached his parents’ house in Florida.
The two had been traveling throughout the country in their van when she vanished in August 2021.
Authorities later said Laundrie killed his fiancée, with her strangled remains found on Sept. 19 of that year. Laundrie later died by suicide.
Laundrie’s parents in recently revealed legal papers said they were concerned about Petito’s well-being after their son called them in panic to tell them she was “gone,” but that they didn’t think it meant she was killed.
“He [Brian] was not calm and he got very excited and told me things had — you know, ‘Gabby’s gone’ and he got very frantic. Everything was frantic and quick,” father Christopher Laundrie recalled.
