What Does Gabby Petito’s Death Mean for Missing Persons Cases?
“Guilty people love to talk, who am I to stop them?”
-Joe Kenda
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On August 30, 2021, Gabby Petito’s mother, Nichole Schmidt, received the last text she would ever receive from her daughter. This text was so odd that it prompted her family to report her missing on September 11, 2021. On September 19, 2021, Gabby’s remains were found in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming. It has been determined that she died 2-3 weeks before her body was discovered. Her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, allegedly had returned home from his cross-country trip with Gabby alone on September 1st. We are not certain we believe that he actually ever went home. On September 17 Brian was also reported missing. It was not until October 20 that Brian’s remains were also found in Florida.
Most of you who have been following this case know the details. After the August 12 visit from the police it looks like Brian Laundrie was abusive. Many have jumped immediately to the conclusion that he murdered Gabby. While it’s probably true, where’s the evidence to support this claim? We cannot say 100 percent for sure that he did this. It has been confirmed that Gabby was murdered by strangulation. Brian ended his own life with a gunshot. Many people who are capable of violence against others are also able to be violent towards themselves. We would know this because we are both domestic violence survivors. However, this does not necessarily mean Brian murdered Gabby. He is merely a person of interest. And now we will never know what happened because both Gabby and Brian are deceased. They are the only two people traveling in that fabled van, that we know of.
There is so much that we don’t know in this case. So many loose ends. Did Gabby have any other enemies or a stalker? Did Brian have a side chick (or man) who wanted her out of the way? This story has more holes than swiss cheese. We are in no way defending Brian or painting him out to be this wonderful boyfriend, well, technically fiance. We are merely pointing out that while Occam’s Razor says that Brian did it, it’s not a done deal. Most murders are done by people who are close to the victim. So if Brian did indeed murder Gabby, was he the only one involved? This will most likely remain a mystery.
After the authorities found Brian’s body with the assistance of his family, they discovered more evidence. For some reason, they were unwilling to allow the family to assist until well after their search began. Brian went missing in a nature reserve where even the most seasoned wilderness experts explained they could never survive. He was identified by his dental records. Besides Brian’s remains were found a backpack and notebook among other items. In the notebook was a message where Brian claimed “responsibility” for Gabby’s death. What does “responsible,” mean? It is very misleading and presumptuous for the media to report that this was a confession of murder. And close to an outright lie. The FBI did not interpret it this way.
Responsible can mean so many different things. Perhaps he set her up with someone who murdered her? Or he felt that the whole trip was a mistake. Or he regretted continuing the relationship which led to her death. Or he did indeed kill her himself. It’s very open-ended. We don’t know.
We are saddened by the death of Gabby Petito. As parents to a young lady, it is awful to see this happen to someone with so much of her life left to live. We can also relate to her. We were once young 22 years old women. We understand all too well the temptation to jump into a relationship and stay even when it turns toxic. You think you love them. We could have easily ended up like Gabby, thankfully we did not. As social media stars, we also know the dangers that come with this life. Anyone in the public eye is at higher risk of gaining the dead weight of a stalker. We’ve had several ourselves already. Blind YouTuber Molly Burke had to abandon her home and move out of the country to Canada to escape her stalker. If anything this amplifies our cries to make social media safer. We are not saying we want Big Brother to watch our every move, but there are things social media giants can do to regulate their platforms. Hate is rampant in the comments on any social media platform. We’ve experienced this ourselves. We’ve even received death threats, which were monitored and squashed.
Gabby’s death has brought up cries that so many other people go missing and no one cares. Tragically, this is true. Gabby’s death shocked the nation and went viral because this pretty young lady had quite a following on Instagram and other platforms. People noticed she went missing because she had an audience. Most people who go missing do not have that. Some claim she was noticed because she is white. We disagree. Why bring race into it? Her death is still a tragedy. It’s insulting to her life and her family’s pain to trivialize her death like this.
The University of Wyoming found that 710 Indigenous people were reported missing in Wyoming in the last decade. This study revealed that 57% of the people reported missing were female, 85% minors, and Indigenous people were 100% more likely to be missing than whites after 30 days. These numbers are completely unacceptable. All missing cases are awful and should be investigated thoroughly.
So you want the media to talk about these cases more often? Then you, the viewers, must remain interested. The media is a reflection of the demands of the consumers. Creating media is not easy. If you deviate from the topics of the day to pursue a poignant human interest story people must pay attention. Your clicks and views determine what is relevant. If you don’t like a story, don’t watch it. Don’t share it. Turn off the tv or change the station. This is why we don’t watch Main Stream Media. We can’t stand it. So we created our own source of news. However, despite our growth, we remain small. Our viewpoint is logical and reasonable, which is quite radical compared to the rest of MSM. Chris Cuomo was dragged off the air for reporting in the same way we do. If you want to see a change in the way the news is covered then you must support grassroots movements like ours. Instead, so many of you have tried to cancel us.
There is a reason why stations such as CNN report the same thing repeatedly every hour throughout the day. YOU KEEP WATCHING IT. By boosting their views you are telling them what you want. You have no idea how much of this is your fault. You created this beast and you alone have the power to defeat it, to change it. The ball is in YOUR court.
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So, what missing person’s cases would you like us to cover? Do you have any tips? Let us know. We will cover them.
