Gabby Petito’s parents are having their day in court with the Laundries.
Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt’s legal team will face off with Chris and Roberta Laundrie’s lawyer, Steven Bertolino, on Wednesday, June 22.
The first hearing will determine if the case will proceed to a jury trial next year, according to WFLA.
The Petito-Schmidt’s Lawsuit Against The Laundries Is Going To Court
Judge Hunter W. Carroll will hear arguments from both sides. He scheduled a tentative jury trial for August 2023.
Cameras will be permitted in the courtroom during Wednesday’s hearing and throughout the trial.
The hearing is scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m. ET/ 10:30 a.m. PT and last approximately one hour.
A Jury Trial Will Be Determined At Wednesday’s Hearing
The Blast previously reported on the Petito-Schmidt’s lawsuit against the Laundries.
On March 11, Gabby’s biological parents filed a lawsuit in a Florida court suing Chris and Roberta for knowing more about their daughter’s death than they let on.
Brian’s parents filed a motion to dismiss the original lawsuit.
The Laundrie’s family lawyer, Bertolino, made a statement to CBS News on March 30.
“A motion to dismiss the baseless and frivolous lawsuit commenced by Gabby Petito’s parents was filed in court,” Bertolino said in the statement. “The Laundries have exercised their constitutional right to refrain from speaking and have relied on counsel to speak for them. This is not only common practice in our civilized society but it embodies the exercise of fundamental rights under the United States and Florida Constitutions. The Laundries’ rights are inalienable and the Laundries can never be liable for exercising their legal rights in a permissible way.”
In April, WFLA reported, Judge Carroll responded to the motion for the lawsuit’s dismissal by allowing the attorneys for Petito and Schmidt 20 days to file an amended complaint.
Gabby’s Parents Are Ready To Battle Brian Laundrie’s Parents
That’s exactly what their attorney, Pat Reilly, did.
In a follow-up report from WFLA, Gabby’s parents filed an amended lawsuit against the Laundries. There have been six amendments made to the suit.
The amended suit claims Chris and Roberta went on vacation with Brian while knowing he had murdered Gabby, and they refused to disclose the location of her remains.
Gabby’s Parents Believe The Laundrie’s Attempted To Help Brian Flee
The lawsuit continues to claim the North Port, Florida residents knew all along Brian murdered his 22-year-old girlfriend and they looked into ways to help him flee the country.
While there have been changes made to the lawsuit, evidence is still lacking to back up the allegations made against the Laundries.
Last month, Reilly told WFLA, “They’ll have to wait and see. If we didn’t believe it was true, we wouldn’t have put them in the complaint.”
One change to the lawsuit centers around the Laundries September trip to Fort DeSoto.
Petito & Schmidt Believe The Laundries Knew More Than They Let On!
The amended lawsuit now claims the family went on vacation not only aware Brian had murdered Gabby, but also with the knowledge of where Petito’s body was located.
While Gabrielle Petito’s family was suffering, the Laundrie family went on vacation to Fort DeSoto Park on September 6-7, 2021. They went on vacation knowing that Laundrie had murdered Gabrielle Petito, it is believed that they knew where her body was located, and further knew that Gabrielle Petito’s parents were attempting to locate her,” the suit says.
Another section of the amended lawsuit focused on the Laundries’ contact with law enforcement.
“Law enforcement” has been taken out and changed to read, “Despite the fact that Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt implored Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie to tell them if their daughter was alive, and if she was not, where her remains were located, Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie refused to respond to either Joseph Petito or Nichole Schmidt or law enforcement.”
Bertolino has remained steadfast in his defense that “the Laundries exercised their constitutional right to refrain from speaking and have relied on counsel to speak for them.”
Section 31 was amended to specify claims the Laundries were cognizant of the pain and suffering Petito and Schmidt endured through Gabby’s disappearance.
The suit now reads, “Christopher Laundrie and [Roberta] Laundrie knew of the mental suffering and anguish of Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt in not knowing the well-being or location of their daughter, and further knew that such mental suffering and anguish increased each day that Gabrielle Petito was missing.”
It goes on to say, Chris and Roberta could’ve prevented Petito and Schmidt’s aforementioned mental suffering and anguish by disclosing what they knew about the well-being and location of the remains of Gabby. However, the Laundrie’s refused to do so.
To read all six amendments in depth, click here.
