Parents' Guide to American Murder: Gabby Petito

The tragic true crime docuseries talks about the life and death of Gabby Petito through the lens of domestic abuse and intimate partner violence. Family, friends, and Gabby's artwork and diary entries, which are read out loud in her voice with the help of voice recreation technology, offer a three-dimensional depiction of who she was and details about her relationship with Brian Laundrie. Some of the American Murder conversations about Brian are accompanied by images of his journal entries and artwork, creating a disturbing context from which his abusive behavior is discussed. Some of Gabby's loved ones also share the suspicions they had about her being emotionally abused by Brian for months prior to leaving on their nomadic van journey. However, they also note that it was difficult to confirm what was happening due to Gabby's positive nature and her social media posts, which depicted their relationship as a perfect one. Her friends and family also speculate about why she stayed with him, suggesting that she may have felt confused about her feelings about him, especially given how young she was. Others wonder if she felt trapped and unable to leave.

Adding to friends and family's concerns is the now-infamous police footage of the couple being stopped in Utah after an eyewitness reported seeing Gabby being assaulted two weeks prior to her disappearance. They point to how distraught and confused she appears while trying to explain what happened, and how calm and jovial Brian seems as he convinces them that she was the aggressor. These moments of conjecture feel mildly sensational, but are overshadowed by the sadness and frustration the family feels because the answers to these questions (and others) will never be known. American Murder: Gabby Petito does successfully reveal some of the aspects of the case that made it a big news story, and acknowledges the systemic racism that keeps the cases about missing people from BIPOC communities from attracting the same kind of media attention. It also reminds us that anyone can get seduced into intimate partner violence, no matter how perfect their life seems in front of a camera.