The Gabby Petito lawsuit most people are asking about is the $50 million wrongful death claim her parents filed against the City of Moab, Utah, and its police department over the officers’ handling of an August 12, 2021, traffic stop. A Utah district court dismissed that case in November 2024 on governmental immunity grounds, and it is now pending before the Utah Supreme Court. Two other suits ran alongside it: an emotional distress case against Brian Laundrie’s parents, which settled confidentially in February 2024, and a wrongful death action against Laundrie’s estate, which produced a $3 million default judgment in Florida.
The Wrongful Death Suit Against Moab Police
In November 2022, Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt filed suit in Utah’s Seventh District Court against the City of Moab and its police department, seeking $50 million.1Courthouse News. Judge Dismisses Wrongful Death Lawsuit That Gabby Petitos Parents Filed Against Moab Utah Police They were represented by the firms Parker & McConkie and Zimmerman Booher.2ULCT Utah. Enclosures Petito Binder
The complaint grew out of a stop near Arches National Park a few weeks before Petito’s death. Moab officers pulled over the van Petito and Laundrie were traveling in after a 911 caller reported seeing a man slapping a woman. Officers Eric Pratt and Daniel Robbins separated the couple, observed scratches on Laundrie and a crying Petito, and classified the encounter as a mental health crisis rather than a domestic assault. No citations were issued and no arrests were made.3Moab City. Combined Statement and Investigative Report – Petito Laundrie Incident Petito’s remains were found in Wyoming on September 19, 2021; the Teton County Coroner determined she had died of blunt-force injuries to the head and neck with manual strangulation.4FBI. FBI Denver Provides Final Investigative Update on Gabrielle Petito Case
What the Family Alleged
The lawsuit alleged the Moab officers were “grossly negligent” and that their failure to identify Petito as a domestic violence victim contributed to her death weeks later. The complaint said officers sympathized with Laundrie, laughing and joking with him while Petito sat in a police car, and that the dynamic may have emboldened him.1Courthouse News. Judge Dismisses Wrongful Death Lawsuit That Gabby Petitos Parents Filed Against Moab Utah Police The family argued that Utah law required officers to investigate the encounter as domestic violence and identify a “predominant aggressor,” removing officer discretion, and that Pratt instead sought “loopholes” to avoid enforcing those mandates.2ULCT Utah. Enclosures Petito Binder The complaint also alleged negligent hiring, training, and supervision.
An independent review commissioned by Moab and conducted by Captain Brandon Ratcliffe of the Price City Police Department had earlier concluded that the officers made “several unintentional mistakes,” sustained a violation of Utah State Code 77-36-2.2, and recommended both officers be placed on probation.5WDSU. Gabby Petito Brian Laundrie Utah Officers Should Be on Probation The city said it would implement the review’s training and policy recommendations but did not publicly confirm whether the officers were disciplined.3Moab City. Combined Statement and Investigative Report – Petito Laundrie Incident
Moab’s Defense
Moab’s attorney, Mitchell Stephens, argued the claims were “completely speculative” and that Brian Laundrie alone caused Petito’s death. He pointed out that the killing occurred more than a month after the stop and more than 400 miles away, and that the police department did not cause the relationship or influence Petito’s decision to remain with Laundrie. Stephens relied on the Governmental Immunity Act of Utah and what he described as “more than 125 years of binding, legal precedent” shielding government agencies from this kind of claim.6Herald Tribune. Utah Judge Dismisses Wrongful Death Lawsuit Filed by Gabby Petitos Parents
The Dismissal and the Appeal
On November 20, 2024, Seventh District Court Judge Don M. Torgerson dismissed the lawsuit. He ruled that governmental immunity required dismissal and that he could not consider the family’s argument that the immunity law was unconstitutional, noting the Utah Court of Appeals would be the proper venue for that question.7Fox5 NY. Utah Judge Dismisses Petito Lawsuit The Petito family said the Utah Constitution’s “original intent” preserves the right to recover for wrongful death in these circumstances, and their attorneys announced plans to appeal.1Courthouse News. Judge Dismisses Wrongful Death Lawsuit That Gabby Petitos Parents Filed Against Moab Utah Police
The appeal was filed in December 2024, and the Utah Supreme Court officially docketed the case in February 2025.8ABC4. Gabby Petito Utah Supreme Court The appeal turns on whether Utah’s Governmental Immunity Act can lawfully bar wrongful death claims against government entities, or whether the state constitution prohibits that outcome.
The family’s attorneys are asking the court to overturn Tiede v. State, a 1996 Utah Supreme Court decision that held the state immune from negligence claims when the underlying injuries arose from intentional torts like assault or battery.9vLex. Tiede v. State In Tiede, the court concluded that Article XVI, Section 5 of the Utah Constitution, which protects the “right of action to recover damages for injuries resulting in death,” was limited to the kinds of claims that existed when the constitution was adopted in 1895. The Petito legal team argues that wrongful death claims against the government were viable in 1895, that Tiede rested on an incorrect reading of that history, and that the legislature therefore lacks power to immunize government entities against such claims.10ULCT Utah. Enclosures Mayne Binder
Oral argument was originally set for March 4, 2026. The court postponed it after the passage of Utah Senate Bill 134, which expanded the Supreme Court from five to seven justices; a temporary standing order now requires a full seven-member panel for cases involving constitutional challenges to statutes. The parties also asked for the Petito case to be heard the same day as a companion case, Mayne v. Salt Lake City Police Department, which raises similar immunity questions.11EIN Presswire. Utah Supreme Court Reschedules Oral Argument in Petito v. Moab City Police Department Following Court Expansion As of mid-2026, no new hearing date has been announced and the case remains pending. Multiple amicus briefs have been filed, including from the State of Utah and local governments.8ABC4. Gabby Petito Utah Supreme Court
The Lawsuit Against Brian Laundrie’s Parents
In March 2022, Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt sued Christopher and Roberta Laundrie, along with the family’s attorney Steven Bertolino, for intentional infliction of emotional distress.12ABC News. Parents of Gabby Petito Brian Laundrie Reach Settlement Emotional The suit alleged the Laundries knew their son had killed Petito shortly after it happened and deliberately withheld that information while she was still missing. Court records later showed that in depositions, the Laundrie parents acknowledged Brian called them on August 29, 2021, saying Petito was “gone” and that he needed a lawyer. They retained Bertolino the same day.13ABC7 News. Gabby Petito Brian Laundrie Parents Emotional Distress Lawsuit
Much of the case focused on a September 14, 2021, statement issued through Bertolino: “It is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family.” The Petito family called that statement “beyond outrageous,” arguing the Laundries expressed hope for her safe return while allegedly knowing she had been murdered.14The Guardian. Gabby Petito Laundrie Parents Lawsuit The complaint also alleged the Laundries knew where Petito’s body was and went on a family vacation with that knowledge.156ABC. Gabby Petito Brian Laundrie Parents Lawsuit Family
The Laundries denied that Brian told them he had killed Petito, though Roberta Laundrie acknowledged in a deposition that the thought “probably went through my mind.” The defense argued that silence is not legally actionable, that the Laundries had a constitutional right to remain silent, and that their public statements were protected by the First Amendment.13ABC7 News. Gabby Petito Brian Laundrie Parents Emotional Distress Lawsuit
On February 21, 2024, the parties reached a confidential settlement after a day of mediation, avoiding a civil trial scheduled for May 2024.16NBC News. Settlement Reached Gabby Petito Laundrie Families Bertolino, a co-defendant, was included in the settlement and said in a statement, “The terms of the resolution are confidential, and we look forward to putting this matter behind us.”176ABC. Gabby Petito Brian Laundrie Parents Emotional Distress Lawsuit
The Judgment Against Brian Laundrie’s Estate
In a separate Florida action, the Petito family sued Brian Laundrie’s estate for wrongful death. On November 17, 2022, Sarasota County Circuit Court Judge Hunter Carroll awarded $3 million to Nichole Schmidt as administrator of Petito’s estate. The judgment was largely symbolic. The family’s attorney, Patrick Reilly, said, “Brian did not have $3 million; it’s an arbitrary number,” and that any future proceeds would go to the Gabby Petito Foundation.18ABC News. Gabby Petitos Family Awarded $3M Wrongful Death Lawsuit
Of the three cases, only the Moab lawsuit remains open. Its outcome at the Utah Supreme Court will decide not only whether the Petito family can proceed against the city but how far governmental immunity extends when a Utah police response is alleged to have contributed to a later death.