Gabby Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Brian Laundrie's estate, seeking $30,000 in damages.
The lawsuit states that Laundrie, 23, intentionally killed Petito, 22, and as a direct result of his actions, Schmidt, as well as Gabby Petito's father Joseph Petito, "incurred funeral and burial expenses, and they have suffered a loss of care and comfort and suffered a loss of probable future companionship, society, and comfort."
As reported by Fox News, Schmidt is seeking a trial by jury and judgment for compensatory damages.
Petito and her fiancé Laundrie, left New York in July as they embarked on a cross-country trip. During their trip, Petito, who was a travel blogger, was in constant contact with her parents and sibling, the suit said. Her last communication with them was on August 27.
After being reported missing, the 22-year-old's remains were found on a campsite in Teton County, Wyoming in September. The coroner ruled that she died by strangulation.
Laundrie had returned solo to the couple's home on September 1 - and then approximately two weeks later, he disappeared. His remains were later found in a Florida nature preserve and a medical examiner ruled he died by suicide.
In March, Petito's family launched a civil action lawsuit against his parents, Christopher and Roberta Laundrie. The lawsuit accuses the deceased man's parents of knowing that "Gabrielle Petito had been murdered by their son".
Per The Independent, in an amendment filed in April, Petito's parents argued that not only did Laundrie's parents know that he murdered their daughter, but they also knew the location of her remains.
Laundrie family attorney Steven Bertolino filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit claiming that there are no facts to support their claims of "intentional infliction of emotional distress."
In a statement to Fox News about the latest suit, Bertolino said the Petito family's wrongful death lawsuit "was fully expected."
"This lawsuit will most likely not be defended and the Petitos will have gained nothing more than a piece of paper that tells them what everyone already knows – which is that Brian was responsible for Gabby's death as indicated by the FBI," he said.
The curator of Laundrie's estate, Barry Spivey, told Fox News Digital that one of his roles as a limited curator "is to accept service of a summons on that lawsuit," but he has "absolutely no responsibility to respond to it."
"They needed somebody to accept service of process, but once that's done, I'm done with it," he said of the complaint.
