West
Gabby Petito urged Brian Laundrie to 'stop crying' in love letter to her killer released by FBI
FIRST ON FOX: Gabby Petito attempted to soothe Brian Laundrie in a previously unseen letter released this week by the FBI, telling him to “stop crying” in an apparent attempt to make amends over an unknown issue.
The pages appeared to have been written before the couple left on their ill-fated road trip and referenced coming “back from NY.”
“Brian, you know how much I love you, so (and I’m writing this with love) Just please stop crying and stop calling me names, because we’re a team,” Petito wrote in an undated letter. “And I’m here with you. I’m always going to have your back”
The two handwritten pages from Petito, 22, to Laundrie, 23, were included in a 366-page release of law enforcement documents regarding the case. She apologized for getting upset over “a dumb piece of paper,” and tried to comfort the man who would eventually kill her.
GABBY PETITO’S MOM FORGIVES KILLER BRIAN LAUNDRIE, CALLS OUT ‘EVIL’ ROBERTA: ‘YOU DESERVE TO BE FORGOTTEN’
The 22-year-old Gabby Petito from New York’s Long Island was reported missing on Saturday, Sept. 11, 2021 by her family after her fiancé returned home alone from a cross-country road trip the two had embarked on in early July. An FBI-led search later uncovered her remains at a Wyoming campsite near where she had last been seen. (Steve Petito )
“I love you so much it hurts,” Petito wrote. “So you in pain is killing me. I’m not trying to be negative, but I’m frustrated there’s not more I can do.”
Petito appeared hopeful and ambitious in the letter, vowing to achieve the couple’s shared dreams, reiterating her love – but also apologizing for unstated transgressions.
“I hope you understand when I’m upset it’s cause you make me love you too much,” she wrote on a second page. “Now…stop crying! And come home and say you love me with a big hug.”
Despite her words, the files reveal that the FBI was quick to launch a kidnapping and murder investigation, just days after Petito was reported missing in September 2021.
BRIAN LAUNDRIE’S PARENTS ADMIT BEING WORRIED ABOUT GABBY PETITO’S WELL-BEING WHEN HE CALLED DAYS AFTER MURDER
Read Gabby Petito’s note to Brian Laundrie
Other items in the file include pictures of personal effects belonging to both Petito and Laundrie as well as internal FBI notes, warrant returns and police reports from local agencies around the country.
According to a North Port, Florida, search warrant, tensions within the couple were increasingly visible to an unnamed person who communicated with Petito on a near daily basis.
Investigators also collected photographs of sketches created by Laundrie and his journals. In one entry, he mused about suicide and wrote that he kept a revolver under his mattress.
Brian Laundrie as seen in bodycam footage released by the Moab Police Department in Utah. (Moab PD)
Petito’s last known public sighting came on Aug. 27 leaving Jackson, Wyoming. Laundrie remained in the area for about three days before he drove her van back to his parents’ house in North Port, Florida, and the mystery of her disappearance soon made headlines around the world.
Before an FBI-led search discovered her remains in the Bridger-Teton National Forest at a campsite where she had stayed with Laundrie, agents already suspected he was responsible for her death, according to the unclassified documents.
“At time of case opening, Laundrie would not speak to investigators in reference to the location of Petito,” an agent wrote on Sept. 15. “Writer requests a case opening for kidnapping and murder of Petito on federal lands.”
The Petito, Schmidt and Laundrie families said they had not been given a heads up by the FBI prior to the release of the documents.
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Gabby Petito memorial in Florida. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
Steve Bertolino, the attorney for Laundrie and his parents, said some of the photographs and writings he had seen when the FBI returned Laundrie’s personal effects to the family. But other items, including the FBI’s internal documents, were new to him.
BRIAN LAUNDRIE HIRED WYOMING LAWYER WHO DEFENDED BIN LADEN BODYGUARD IN GUANTANAMO
Gabby Petito poses in front of a mural. (Steve Petito)
Last week, Petito’s mom Nichole Schmidt told an assembly in Nashville that she had forgiven Laundrie.
“I speak for myself here when I say Brian, I forgive you,” she told a packed auditorium at CrimeCon 2024. “I needed to release myself from the chains of anger and bitterness, and I refuse to let your despicable act define the rest of my life.”
Following Petito’s death, her parents and stepparents created a foundation in her honor to combat domestic violence and raise awareness for missing persons.
Gabby Petito poses for an Instagram photo in Bryce Canyon National Park. (Family of Gabby Petito)
They have lobbied for federal legislation, some of which became law last year with bipartisan support, as well as lethality assessment laws in Florida, Utah and New York.
The foundation donated $100,000 to the National Domestic Violence Hotline last year.
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If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233 (SAFE).
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Oregon
Liu makes two! 2nd red panda joins Oregon Zoo family
PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — The Oregon Zoo has welcomed a second red panda to their ranks this month, as 6-year-old Liu gets settled in to the habitat.
Liu comes to Portland from the Toledo Zoo as part of the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Species Survival Plan for red pandas.
He arrived just weeks after Enoki, a female red panda, and caregivers will soon introduce the duo in the hopes that they may eventually help add to the population of the endangered species.
PAST COVERAGE | Enoki the red panda joins Oregon Zoo, ‘exploring, snacking & napping’ in new habitat
For those coming to see the pandas, they should be easy to tell apart. Liu has a blonde tail, and Enoki is much smaller with a darker coat.
“He’s very handsome,” said Dr. Carlos Sanchez, the zoo’s director of animal health, who stopped by Liu’s habitat to observe, a red panda plushy tucked under one arm. “His tail is so blond — surfer blond.”
Liu was born on June 28, 2019 at Prospect Park Zoo in Brooklyn. His name means “willow” in Mandarin Chinese, a nod to his mother, whose name is also Willow.
Enoki is nearly three years old, and is of the refulgens subspecies of red panda, known for having darker faces and more prominent tail rings.
“These two represent a species in trouble,” said Kelly Gomez, who oversees the zoo’s red panda area. “In the past 25 years, habitat loss, poaching and the illegal wildlife trade have wiped out nearly half the world’s red panda population. Hopefully, we can help inspire a new chapter in the conservation of this incredible species.”
The duo joins the Oregon Zoo family more than a year after the death of Moshu, the zoo’s previous resident red panda who was dubbed “Sir Snacks-a-Lot.” Moshu was 14 years old.
More info from the Oregon Zoo.
Utah
4 Prospects the Utah Jazz Could Trade Up to Draft in the Second Round
After landing Darryn Peterson at the top of Tuesday night’s first round, the Utah Jazz are heading into day two of the 2026 NBA Draft without a second round at their disposal.
However, with a front office like the one that’s in Utah, it’d be hard to truly count out the Jazz from making a trade throughout the night to jump into the second round, in the event there was a prospect the Ainges had a certain appeal for.
While most of the big names of this class have already been scooped up in the first 30 picks, there’s certainly a few both interesting and potentially valuable names to keep an eye on through the next 30.
And for the Jazz, a few of them could fit their current lineup or some specific needs well enough that would make sense to get back on the clock once again.
Let’s take a look at four prospects still left up for grabs on day two of the draft that could be a worthwhile pickup for the Jazz to consider trading up for.
Dillon Mitchell | F, St. Johns
An athletic forward fresh off of a season under Rick Pitino at St. John’s, trading up to add another D-Mitchell to Utah’s draft history might not be the worst idea here.
Offensively, he won’t bring a ton to the table, as he only averaged 8.3 points a night during his senior season and shot a rough 6.7% from three. What he does do is check a ton of boxes in terms of size at 6-foot-8, 210 pounds, as well as his abilities as a defender, rebounder, and energy guy enough to warrant a look at the top half of the second round.
For the Jazz, perhaps they’d like to land on a more dynamic fit on both ends than Mitchell. But he sure would bring a nice spark on the defensive end that Utah could utilize after multiple lackluster years of production on that end of the floor.
Richie Saunders | G, BYU
A local product who spent four years with Brigham Young, Saunders might not fit exactly the type of mold on the defensive end that Utah could really covet here in the second round.
However, he does project to be a pretty seamless connecting wing with solid NBA size standing at 6-foot-5, has a strong outside shooting ability with a 38.7% clip from deep from his career, and should be able to at least hold his own on the other end.
He’d be a nice fit in Will Hardy’s system, and have a solid pro career as role player in the wing.
Trevon Brazile | F, Arkansas
If you’re looking for a lengthy, two-way impact player that could fit with the current standout size in this Jazz frontcourt, Brazile would be a perfect fit to bring in that would do just that.
He’s got great length standing at 6-foot-10, can be an ample shot blocker, is a threat at the rim who can finish well, stretches the floor, and on paper, looks like the type of piece in the frontcourt that many front offices around the league would love to get their hands on.
However, he has seen several questions regarding his lighter frame at 225 pounds, and has shown a lack of physicality and a real motor from his time at Arkansas. That same reason is why many GMs might turn away from taking a flier on him.
Jaden Bradley | G, Arizona
For the guards that are up for grabs in this range, Bradley has some of the best traits in terms of size at 6-foot-3, 200 pounds, and has the chance to be an impactful player on both ends of the floor as a solid playmaker and perimeter defender.
He wasn’t a high-volume scorer during his three years at Arizona, but he was efficient in his opportunities, shooting over 46% from the field and 39% from three on over nine shots a game. He could be a worthwhile dart throw to bring in for the back-end of the roster.
Another note that could make him a fun target for the Jazz: Bradley and Keyonte George are tight-knit from their days as teammates back at IMG Academy. So he’d be a pretty awesome fit into the locker room on top of the impact he offers on the floor.
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Washington
Inside Woodlawn Cemetery’s mission to preserve history
The iron gate to Woodlawn Cemetery is almost always locked shut, but Toni White-Richardson was more than happy to let News4 inside.
As president of the Woodlawn Cemetery Perpetual Care Association, she was excited to talk about what makes this resting place so special.
“It is major D.C. history, first. Then it’s also major Black history, second,” White-Richardson said.
More than 30,000 people, mostly African Americans, are buried among the 22 acres of Woodlawn Cemetery, which opened in Southeast D.C. in 1895. And like so many cemeteries that date back to the 1800s, particularly African American cemeteries, this one has fallen into disrepair, is overgrown and has headstones tumbled over, like those of Wilhelmina and her husband James, and Eliza Spencer, a mother who died in 1887.
“Let me do a very upfront disclaimer,” White-Richardson said. “We have no idea where these stones go. And when we looked at the grid, it became even clear as mud, it became less clear as to where these stones should really go. Unfortunately, when we look back, we can tell there was a plan, but we could see we never got totally completed. Even back then, there are no markers saying this is Section H or this is Section G or this is 102 and this is, none of that.”
One of the most notable Washingtonians laid to rest here is John Mercer Langston, Virginia’s first Black congressman.
“Langston University came one year because they had a grand reunion in D.C., and we arranged for them to come to see […] John Mercer Langston, the university that was named after this man,” White-Richardson said.
And Blance Bruce, the first Black U.S. senator to serve a full term and register of the treasury, is also buried in the cemetery.
“He’s the signature on our dollar bill, you know, back in the late 1800s,” White-Richardson said. “So, oh, it’s history. It’s capital letters. No getting around it.”
Woodlawn is also the resting place of several of the original founders of two of the country’s most prominent Black sororities, Alpha Kappa Alpha and Delta Sigma Theta. Both organizations volunteer to help with clean ups.
The Perpetual Care Association recently received a grant from the D.C. Office of Planning to help with upkeep of the grounds and preserving the history here.
“These are important individuals who’ve made contributions to the District a century ago, but today still their history and their stories reverberate and really influence the trajectory of our city,” said Anita Cozart, director of the D.C. Office of Planning.
The cemetery tucked away off Benning Road is only open to the public five days a year, but groups can request tours anytime. The next chance to visit Woodlawn when it will be open to the public is Labor Day.
They’re always looking for volunteers and donors to help with the upkeep of this sacred ground.
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