Coroner: Gabby Petito strangled 3-4 weeks before found
Source: AP
By MEAD GRUVER
CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) Cross-country traveler Gabby Petito was strangled, a Wyoming coroner announced Tuesday.
Petito, 22, died three to four weeks before her body was found Sept. 19 near an undeveloped camping area along the border of Grand Teton National Park in remote northern Wyoming, Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue said in a news conference.
It wasnt clear if the determination might lead to additional charges against Petitos boyfriend and traveling partner, Brian Laundrie, who is considered a person of interest in her disappearance and remains unaccounted for.
Blue declined to say more about the autopsy or the case overall, saying he was prevented by Wyoming law that limits what coroners can release.
FILE - This police camera video provided by The Moab Police Department shows Gabrielle "Gabby" Petito talking to a police officer after police pulled over the van she was traveling in with her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, near the entrance to Arches National Park on Aug. 12, 2021. Teton County Coroner Brent Blue is scheduled to announce the findings of Petito's autopsy at a news conference early Tuesday, Oct. 12. (The Moab Police Department via AP)
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/gabby-petito-strangulation-wyoming-76a586b5c3b9a0d1240d7f3b823b5b1d
mahatmakanejeeves
(56,906 posts)The 22-year-olds remains were found last month in a national forest in Wyoming, the F.B.I. said. The police continue to search for her fiancé, Brian Laundrie.
By Alyssa Lukpat
Oct. 12, 2021, 3:36 p.m. ET
Gabrielle Petito, the Florida woman whose disappearance led to a wide-ranging investigation into her fiancé, who returned home without her from a cross-country trip before disappearing himself, died from strangulation, the authorities said on Tuesday.
Dr. Brent Blue, the Teton County, Wyo., coroner, did not disclose at a news briefing how Ms. Petito was strangled. He said her body had been outside for three to four weeks before it was found on Sept. 19 in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, in Wyoming.
The Teton County Coroners Office had determined on Sept. 21 that her death was a homicide, but Dr. Blue said on Tuesday that he did not know the exact day Ms. Petito died.
There will not be an exact date of death on the death certificate, he said.
Dr. Blue revealed little else about the condition of Ms. Petitos body, though he said she was not pregnant at the time of her death. (Rumors had circulated that she was pregnant.) The authorities conducted a toxicology test on her body, which is being held at a local mortuary, but did not disclose the results. Dr. Blue directed further questions about the homicide to the F.B.I.
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Response to Omaha Steve (Original post)
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BigmanPigman
(51,432 posts)She likely died on Aug. 27th, the same day that he flew into a rage at a local restaurant over the bill. Gabby cried and tried to apologize for him as he went into the establishment 4 times to yell at the staff. A few hours later she was dead by manual strangulation/throttling. That dude is psycho and probably in Mexico right now, thanks to his lying parents.
Grammy23
(5,808 posts)Her last thoughts as she was murdered just break my heart. Knowing of the encounters with law enforcement within days before she died is even more frustrating. If any of them had been handled just a little bit different, she might be alive today. Very, very sad story.
COL Mustard
(5,784 posts)But I don't think I'll ever understand the killing of an intimate partner. If you don't want to be with him/her anymore, just leave. If they make you that crazy, just leave. Don't ruin their life and yours, and everyone's life who cares about you (either one of you)...just leave.
Mysterian
(4,525 posts)"If I can't have you, nobody will" type of thing.
The grief/anger of being dumped is too much for some emotionally insecure partners to control.
MyMission
(1,845 posts)If there's no history of domestic abuse or mental illness. A defense ploy.
I agree with you. If they make you crazy, just leave. But that's often easier said than done.
I've known people who talked about suicide as a means of revenge, to make their partner suffer.
I don't get that either.
colorado_ufo
(5,717 posts)and it just gets taken out on the person easiest and closest, usually someone who won't fight back.
maxsolomon
(32,992 posts)There's likely DNA under her nails from the struggle.
We still don't know where the crime occurred (in the campground or elsewhere); only where her remains were found.
I don't think Laundrie is going to show up alive.
wnylib
(21,146 posts)Laundrie will not show up alive. Since he drove her van home, we know that it was not a double murder by a third party.
If he was her killer, and it looks like he was, I think he might not be found at all. I think he left the country.
eggplant
(3,893 posts)Ziggysmom
(3,374 posts)2naSalit
(86,072 posts)My speculation about some of the things that were said include the word "remains" which they have used since she was found. That word is usually the term used when a body is not intact when found. From what I have heard in recent weeks is that time of death cannot be determined because of the condition of her remains when found. A shallow grave in the woods in these parts at this time of year will inevitably attract and be dug up by any number of carnivores in the first day or two which is what I suspect happened. I have herd chatter that the body was in really bad condition when found, as in not all in one piece, and not dismembered by animals... or so the rumor goes. That would cause the authorities to avoid disclosing details of that sort. Only if the family wants those details released will they be disclosed anytime soon.
womanofthehills
(8,584 posts)Neighbors said when he returned to his parents house he mowed their lawn and went biking around the neighborhood with his mom - like nothing happened.
muriel_volestrangler
(101,160 posts)https://www.baynews9.com/fl/tampa/news/2021/10/11/coroner-to-discuss-gabby-petito-autopsy-ruling-tuesday
So this just rules out her dying after Laundrie returned to Florida. I think everyone had assumed she died when he was there.
BigmanPigman
(51,432 posts)He had returned from FL on Aug 23 after flying home for a week to move her stuff in a storage locker that his father had her stuff stored in. That trip is suspicious since the couple was broke but they suddenly, in the middle of their trip, had to separate and she stayed at a hotel in Utah and asked her dad to order Ubereats for her and they worked on her blog over the phone while Brian was gone and it was peaceful to work. Why spend all that money on a hotel for a week and a round trip plane ticket for a $75 a month storage locker? The parents of both Gabby and Brian have helped them out financially often.
FakeNoose
(32,356 posts)The photo of the van was on Facebook or Instagram, but she's not in the vehicle. For all anyone knows Gabby Petito might have already been dead. I believe the date was late August - the 28th or 29th. Gabby's final posting was that Brian went fishing on his own, and she's posting her vacation stories on the website for the day.
On August 30th Laundrie told his family he was driving home alone, because Gabby "decided" to stay in Teton. She wasn't in the vehicle with Laundrie as he drove home. Perhaps another woman might have been in the van, such as a hitchhiker? I don't know. It wasn't Gabby, that is known for sure. She must have been killed before August 30th.
Joinfortmill
(14,247 posts)speaktruthtopower
(800 posts)so the family can have some closure.
Rorey
(8,445 posts)Sabuca
(48 posts)Who knows.
Manifestor_of_Light
(21,046 posts)Strangulation
https://becoming-radfem.tumblr.com/post/614926656838221824/choking-is-a-proven-way-to-show-affection-and-true
strangulation (which is what this is) causes internal injuries, brain damage, respiratory arrest, cardiac arrest, and death even weeks after the abuse.
its a common form of male violence against Women and more than 65% of victims of intimate partner violence will experience near-fatal choking. it is often the last step of male abuse before murder and the risk of a victim being murdered by her abuser increases dramatically once he has strangled her.
Jugular veins collapse under 4.4 pounds of pressure. Carotid arteries collapse under 5.5 to 22 pounds of pressure. The vertebral arteries will collapse under 18 to 66 pounds of pressure. The collapse of each of these vital structures can lead to immediate death, as well as delayed complications.
An average male grip strength is around 88lbs.
Compression of the jugular veins results in acute death by causing cerebral hypoxia. Direct compression of the carotid arteries also leads to decrease or loss of cerebral blood flow and brain death. Direct pressure on the carotid sinuses causes a drop in blood pressure, bradycardia, and other arrhythmias. Consequences are anoxic and hypoxic brain injury death.
There can be long-term consequences of strangulation injuries due to vascular compromise as well. Long-term anoxic brain injury, thrombotic stroke, dissection, and aneurysm of vessels can all cause significant morbidity.
Strangulation can lead to death days or even weeks after the attack. It can cause heart attacks, brain damage, miscarriage, one-sided weakness, seizures and more. In 50% of cases, this level of damage is reached without leaving any marks.