Body language expert says Laundrie parents' first police encounter fair to question – but with major caveat
Newly released bodycam video from the Laundrie family's first encounter with police after Gabby Petito's disappearance in 2021 shows some red flags, according to a body language expert – but she noted that the parents were smart for following the instructions of their lawyer.
"Their natural instinct, just like Casey Anthony and George Anthony, at the very beginning, they're going to be protective," Susan Constantine told Fox News Digital.
The bodycam video shows Christopher and Roberta Laundrie declining to speak with North Port police, who at the time were assisting a New York detective with the initial stages of the search for Petito.
The parents' responses may invite questions, Constantine said. Some were even suspicious. But without a "cluster of behavior" – which she defines as three red flags across two channels within 7 seconds – she wouldn't call them out on their interaction with police.
Watch as Susan Constantine breaks down the Laundrie bodycam:
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"There is reason to question," she said. "But you also have to look at it from a parent's point of view. What would you do if this happened to you?"
Constantine, who spent part of the week training West Virginia's Supreme Court justices on how to identify liars, also has a forthcoming book on how to spot "liars, cons, scammers, predators and criminals."
She said it's fair to to question whether the Laundries knew more than they let on – but it was also proper for them to heed the advice of their attorney, who told them not to speak with investigators without him present.
North Port police recorded the encounter on Sept. 11, 2021, the day Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, reported her missing in her New York hometown. The video was just made public through public records requests. Police left after towing Petito's van from the Laundries' driveway.
Brian Laundrie drove it home from Wyoming, where the FBI says he killed Petito and left her at a campsite in the Bridger-Teton National Forest north of Jackson.
A family of travel bloggers found clues in their own dashcam video of the area, which helped authorities find her remains.
The slaying inspired Petito's parents to found a nonprofit foundation in her honor, assisting other families of missing persons and advocating against domestic violence.
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They have lobbied for federal legislation, some of which became law with bipartisan support, as well as lethality assessment laws in Florida, Utah and New York designed to give police grounds and authority to separate victims from their abusers.
The foundation donated $100,000 to the National Domestic Violence Hotline last year.
If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233 (SAFE).