Gabby Petito boyfriend Brian Laundrie has legal right not to talk to police says lawyers given the risk of incriminating himself versus the wrath of the public and ethical standpoint to reveal all that he knows.
It might be better to be publicly reviled then to talk oneself into legal ramifications. This is the arching point of view of one practicing lawyer according to a report.
Florida man, Brian Laundrie, the boyfriend of missing Long Island native, Gabby Petito & Florida resident continues to maintain his silence despite calls to answer questions police and the woman’s missing family have.
Laundrie has maintained his silence as public interest in the case continues to proliferate, leading to the man being widely condemned, with many social media commentators now of the opinion that Laundrie may have played a direct part in Petito going missing and her possibly running into danger of even death.
Nevertheless, legal experts are on Laundrie’s side, saying the boyfriend who returned from a trek out west without Petito is making the right call.
‘I am never confident my client had nothing to do with anything,’ attorney Ron Kuby told the nypost. ‘I don’t believe my clients when they say they’re guilty. I don’t believe my clients when they say they’re innocent. The best legal advice is to say nothing.’
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Moral and ethical duty.
Laundrie returned to Florida in the couple’s van without Petito on Sept. 1. He didn’t report her missing and refused to speak to her family or the police. He has maintained that silence even as Petito’s distraught parents have publicly pleaded with him to cooperate with authorities.
Even though there are several scenarios that would potentially absolve Laundrie of foul play, Kuby said he’d still be cautious about Laundrie making any statements. She could have accidentally fallen to her death and Laundrie feared he’d be blamed for it. Or, perhaps, Petito disappeared to create a social media frenzy that would enhance her blogger profile, and he was sworn to secrecy.
‘These are possibilities consistent with innocence but no one ever talked themselves out of trouble in talking to the police,’ the lawyer told the tabloid.
Kuby concedes that this guidance can be a PR nightmare, but that public condemnation is preferable to disclosing information that gets a suspect convicted.
‘From a moral standpoint, from an ethical standpoint, from a duty to treat others in a kind way, it’s a gross violation of society norms,’ Kuby said of Laundrie’s silence. ‘This is of course is why people hate lawyers.’
Former Manhattan prosecutor-turned-defense lawyer, Mark Bederow said there are a lot of good reasons for Laundrie not to talk — especially if he’s ‘guilty of something horrible.’
Bederow said that Laundrie’s attorney has to balance bad optics with the risk of self-incrimination.
‘There’s no question that his behavior is extraordinarily suspicious and his decision now to stand quiet, although permissible under the law, looks terrible,’ Bederow told the nypost. ‘But he’s doing nothing unlawful or legally inappropriate and it may be in his best interest.’
Jeffrey Lichtman, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s attorney, said he would only let his client open his mouth if he were 100 percent certain he was innocent.
‘If you have an alibi, and you know your client didn’t do it, of course, you’re going to let them talk because you want them to drop him as a target,’ the attorney explained to the nypost. But if you’re not sure, even though ‘the guy looks wildly guilty right now,’ it’s safer to stay quiet, he said.
