Seeking Access To Brian Laundrie’s Estate, His Parents File Court Petition

SARASOTA COUNTY, FL — Christopher and Roberta Laundrie, the parents of Brian Laundrie, have filed a court petition seeking access to their son’s estate.

Brian Laundrie, a person of interest in the strangulation death of his fiancé, Gabby Petito, died in September after shooting himself in the head in a Sarasota County park.

His parents filed a “petition for summary administration $1,000 or more” to become beneficiaries of his estate with Sarasota County’s probate division Wednesday, according to court records. There was a $345 fee to file the petition.

According to the court docket, Laundrie died intestate, which means he didn’t make a will before his death.

An initial motions hearing before Judge Hunter Carroll was set for Jan. 18 on Thursday and then canceled Friday without any reason provided. The court hearing wasn’t immediately rescheduled.

Court documents related to the petition are confidential and not currently part of public record.

Laundrie’s assets are listed as $20,000 in Bank of America checking/savings accounts, according to the North Port Sun. There were no creditors or debt listed as part of his estate.

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• Police Spent $200K On Overtime During Laundrie Search: Report
• Utah PD To Return Gabby Petito Bodycam Fees To Press: Report
• Laundrie Likely Took His Own Life In Park, Sheriff Says: Report
• Gabby Petito's Dad Not Speculating On Laundrie Notebook: Report
• Gabby Petito Memorial Removed From Laundrie Yard: Report
• Gabby Petito Foundation Plans Scholarships On Long Island
• Laundrie Cause Of Death Stymies Coroner, Bones To Be Studied
• Photos: The Search For Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie
• Brian Laundrie's Remains Identified Using Dental Records: FBI

The newspaper also said that Sarasota attorney William Galarza is listed as representing the Laundries in their bid to take over their son’s estate. Patch has contacted Galarza’s office for comment.

Throughout the search for their son and Petito, the couple has been represented by New York-based attorney Steven Bertolino.

Laundrie and Petito, both Long Island, New York, natives living with his family in Florida, were traveling across the country visiting national parks this summer when she disappeared at the end of August. Her body was found weeks later near Grand Teton National Park.

He returned home alone to Florida in Petito's van Sept. 1 and was reported missing by his parents Sept. 17.

His skeletal remains, including a portion of his skull, were found Oct. 20 in the Carlton Reserve and the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Sarasota County, along with several of his belongings, after more than a month of searching for him. The FBI used dental records to match the remains to Laundrie.

No cause of death could be determined after an Oct. 22 autopsy, and Laundrie's bones were sent to a forensic anthropologist for further examination.

In a Nov. 23 news release, the District 12 Medical Examiner's Office said that he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.