Brian Laundrie Lawyer Asks Judge Block Testimony In Lawsuit
SARASOTA, FL — The attorney for Gabby Petito’s killer fiancé Brian Laundrie and his parents is requesting a Florida judge deny a motion forcing him to speak about the conversations, pleading his case to maintain his attorney-client privilege, he confirmed Friday night.
An attorney for Petito’s parents, Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt is seeking to force Steven Bertolino, of West Islip, to testify about his private conversations with Laundrie before he shot himself.
The legal maneuver is part of the ongoing lawsuit filed against Laundrie’s parents, Christopher and Roberta Laundrie, which alleges they intentionally inflicted emotional distress on Petito’s family because they knew about her slaying before her body was found and tried to help their son run from the law.
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“The plaintiff’s motion is unsupported by the law and the facts of the case,” Bertolino told Patch Friday night. “My response to their motion sufficiently points out the defects of their position.”
“Hopefully their motion is denied and the basic legal tenet of attorney-client privilege remains intact,” he said.
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His attorney, Laura Kelly, wrote in a court filing that the Petito attorney Pat Reilly’s request for Bertolino’s testimony “would severely compromise the attorney-client privilege that exists between countless clients and their chosen legal counsel,” Fox News reported.
Reilly has argued Laundries’ communications with Bertolino can’t be protected because Laundrie admitted to choking Petito to death, according to Fox.
Patch has reached out to Reilly for comment.
Petito and Laundrie had been traveling in her van across the country while documenting their adventures on Youtube.
Petito’s mother reported her missing Sept. 11 after she lost contact with her.
After Laundrie is alleged to have killed Petito, he then drove her van to his parents’ house in Florida, where they had been living. Multiple law enforcement agencies across the country undertook a massive investigation into her disappearance, while Laundrie refused to speak with them.
Laundrie later went to a Florida swamp, where he shot himself, but not before leaving his confession, which claimed he strangled her out of mercy after she fell into a ravine.
In the two years since Petito’s death, her family has continued to work with the foundation they founded in her honor to help the victims of domestic violence.
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