Moab Incident (Petito-Laundrie)
Moab police responded to a domestic violence call involving Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie but separated them for the night rather than making an arrest. An independent review found failures.
On August 12, 2021, a witness called 911 reporting that a man was 'slapping a girl' near the Moonflower Community Co-op in Moab, Utah. Police pulled over Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie's van.
Body camera footage showed a crying, distraught Gabby with scratches on her face and arm. Officers classified the incident as a mental health crisis rather than domestic violence, and identified Gabby as the aggressor based on her admission that she had hit Laundrie.
Officers separated the couple for the night rather than making any arrest, contrary to Utah's mandatory domestic violence response protocol.
An independent investigation in 2022 concluded that the officers made 'several unintentional mistakes' and cited them for failing to issue a DV citation. The officers were not fired. Gabby was murdered approximately two weeks later.
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