Parents may be off hook
Charges unlikely: pros
Brian Laundrie’s parents are not likely to face criminal charges in connection with Gabby Petito’s disappearance and suspected death, law-enforcement experts told The Post on Monday.
While the apparent discovery of Petito’s body provided enough probable cause for the feds to execute a search warrant at the Laundrie home in North Port, Fla., it doesn’t mean Christopher and Roberta Laundrie are in legal hot water.
“I doubt it,” said Alfredo Garcia, a former assistant state attorney in Florida and current professor at the St. Thomas University School of Law in Miami Gardens, Fla.
“To charge someone as an accessory after the fact, you have to establish that the person knew that they were harboring someone who had committed a crime and they did so in a way to prevent the police from apprehending him,” he said.
“That’s a fairly high threshold [authorities] have to find in terms of intent,” he said.
“I seriously doubt an obstruction charge now is in the cards.”
Former FBI Agent Olivier Farache agreed that it would be very hard to charge the parents with anything.
“I think it’s going to be very unlikely that anybody’s going to be charged other than Brian if it turns out he’s the one who is suspected of having committed the crime,’’ Farache said.
“I think as a general rule it’s very difficult to charge parents for helping a kid if they weren’t part of the act itself.”
“I can’t imagine a lot of prosecutorial resources going to go after the parents,” he added.
Also in the Laundries’ favor is that they refused to speak to investigators in the early days of the probe, meaning charges of lying to law enforcement could be off the table, the experts said.
“It depends on if they actively interfered in the investigation,” said former Manhattan prosecutor Daniel Bibb.
“They certainly can’t be charged with anything for refusing to speak to the police. But if they’re actively thwarting an investigation, they could.”