Thursday 23 June 2022 07:23 AM Brian Laundrie's family says they have 'no regrets' about their response to ... trends now

The lawyer representing Brian Laundrie's parents says they have 'no regrets' about their response to Gabby Petito's murder.

Attorney Steve Bertolino defended the Laundries, saying they did 'everything the right way,' on Wednesday night, just hours after Petito's family blasted them in court as being 'callous and shameful.'

Petito, 22, was strangled on a road trip with Laundrie in Wyoming last summer. The van-life blogger's mother and father are suing their daughter's killer boyfriend and his parents, Christopher and Roberta Laundrie, over her death.  

The civil suit alleges the Laundries knew their son, 23, had murdered Petito after he returned to their Florida home alone - and tried to help him flee authorities. 

Laundrie's parents had filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit. 

After hearing arguments from attorneys for both families on Wednesday, Sarasota County Circuit Court Judge Hunter W. Carroll announced he will make a decision within two weeks as to whether the case will go to trial.

Petito's parents, Nichole Schmidt, 41, and her former husband Joseph Petito, 42, allege the Laundries 'acted with malice or great indifference' by not disclosing what they knew about Petito's death.

Their lawsuit stated Laundrie's parents 'exhibited extreme and outrageous conduct' after Petito's disappearance and is requesting 'just compensation for the damages they have suffered, together with costs, and such other relief.' 

However, the Laundries attorney has dismissed the allegations, arguing he and his clients acted appropriately to the situation.

'What I knew, or what Chris and Roberta knew, we did not have to disclose, to any third party, and specifically to law enforcement, or the Petito family,' Bertolino told NewsNation Wednesday night.

'I did everything the right way. We have no regrets. The parents did everything the right way, and they have no regrets.'

When asked specifically what the Laundries knew about Petito's death, Bertolino declined to answer, saying it 'wouldn't be appropriate for me to comment' given the pending lawsuit.

He did reiterate that he told the media months ago: 'I don't know exactly what Brian had said to his parents. I had said publicly that what Brian told me was privileged. I was not going to share it. 

'I had conversations with Brian. I had conversations with Chris and Roberta. I had conversations with them separately and I had conversations with them together. So, it's not for me to comment at this point in time what Chris and Roberta knew.'

Bertolino added: 'I can tell you what I knew … perhaps, one day what Brian knew, but none of that's gonna happen tonight on this show.'

When asked about the claims that Laundrie's parents were trying to help their killer son flee the country, Bertolino placed blame on the media frenzy surrounding the case.

'Chris and Roberta did nothing but stay in their home,' he argued. 

'There was speculation that there were burner phones, that we were dressing him up in funny outfits and sending him across the Mexican border, sending him across certain bodies of water to other countries in the Bahamas or perhaps out on the Appalachian trail.

'All of that was fill-it work for the networks that had to fill in some time 24/7.'

Bertolino also placed blame on the press for the Laundries alleged lack of distress during the search through a Florida state park for their then-fugitive son.

'They were somber, they were quiet and I can tell you they were very upset and very emotional with me,' the lawyer stated. 'But when you've got a gaggle of press and screaming public out at your door 24 hours a day...

'Did you think [Chris] and Roberta were going to go down to Walmart and start putting up signs: "Help me find my son?" They knew where their son was. They knew where he went. We said it and as it turns out, unfortunately we were correct, that Brian never left the preserve and I certainly think law enforcement knew that all along as well.

'Some people in the press and the public question whether Chris and Roberta should've done more, but more really could they have done when you had all that law enforcement man power searching the preserve?'

Pat Reilly, the Florida attorney representing Petito's parents, also appeared on NewsNation Wednesday night and claimed that the family 'focusing on remaining silent ignores all other proof in the case.'

'If we were in a court of morality, which unfortunately we're not, this would be a really easy decision,' Reilly argued. 

'A freedom of information request could be made for the information the FBI has, and it would be eye opening.' 

Schmidt, 41, toyed nervously with a necklace as she sat with former husband in Sarasota County court before Judge Carroll on Wednesday.

Petito's family claims the Laundries are guilty of 'inflicting intentional emotional distress' and that a statement issued by their lawyer hopeful of a successful end to the search for then-missing Petito was 'outrageous' because they allegedly already knew she was dead.

Their attorney Patrick Reilly told the courtroom: 'This is case not simply about the silence of Robert and Christopher Laundrie who knew their son had brutally murdered Gabby Petito.'

He said it also wasn't about their 'callous refusal despite pleas from the Petito family' to speak out about whether not Petito was alive – or if she wasn't the location of her body.

'It's about a course of conduct that they committed from when they learned on August 28, 2021 that their son had brutally murdered Gabby Petito,' he said.

Reilly said this included the statement that was made by the attorney advising them at the time, Steve Bertolino, regarding their wish for a successful end to the search. 

Carroll asked what duty did Christopher, 63, and Roberta, 56, have to do 'anything to help' Petito's parents.

'It's about what they did with the information that they had,' Reilly replied. 'Not just not disclosing what they knew.'

He added the Laundries could have made an anonymous phone call to reveal the location of Petito's body. The lawyer said they knew the blogger's parents were 'desperately searching' for information.

The hearing was to consider the Laundries' motion to dismiss the case. After hearing pleas from both sides, Judge Carroll said he hoped to issue a written decision in two weeks. If he dismisses the motion, the Laundries could face a jury trial next year.

It is the first time Petito's parents had an opportunity to be in a court over the tragic death of their daughter. Laundrie shot himself after fleeing to a Florida swamp, denying them legal justice.

However, the hearing continued the couple's pain as they had to listen to arguments. Both sets of parents had been friendly before Petito went missing, the court was told.

Petito's remains were eventually discovered on September 19, 2021, in lonely spot in the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming.

She and boyfriend Laundrie had lived with his parents in North Port, near Florida's west coast. The young couple set off on an adventure from New York State – where her mother lives - in early July, heading West.

However, on September 1, Laundrie arrived back at the Laundrie home on his own in Petito's white Ford van. Ten days later anxious Schmidt reported her daughter missing after last having contact in a phone call on August 25.

Hours after Petito's mom raised the alarm, North Port Police hauled the white van off the Laundrie's driveway and took it off for forensic examination.

Officers asked to speak to Laundrie at the house, but were told by his parents he wasn't available. It is not known if the killer was inside at the time.

Laundrie then went missing in the 25,000-acre alligator infested Carlton Reserve near his home, sparking a massive hunt involving local police, the FBI and at least two sheriff's departments.

His parents initially told police he vanished on September 14 to go hiking in the reserve, but later changed this to a day earlier. His body was eventually found in the swamp on October 20 after his parents broke cover and joined law enforcement

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