Brian Laundrie’s parents, whose son killed his fiancée, Gabby Petito, on a cross-country trip in 2022, are speaking out after the release of American Murder: Gabby Petito, a new three-part Netflix documentary on the case, claiming it was “one-sided” and filled with “inaccuracies.”

“The documentary was what we expected,” the Laundrie family lawyer, Steven Bertolino, shared in a statement on behalf of Chris and Roberta Laundrie with People on Wednesday, February 26. “One perspective depicted as the ‘truth’ as seen through their lens. Similar to Republicans and Democrats fighting it out lately. Hard to see through the lens of the other with all the noise and distrust.”

American Murder: Gabby Petito premiered on Netflix on February 17.

“The documentary contained many inaccuracies, incorrect juxtapositions of timelines, and misstatements and omissions of fact — perhaps deliberate to capture their ‘truth’, perhaps due to simple error,” the statement continued, before acknowledging that Brian did commit the crime against Petito. “We all know Brian took Gabby’s life and Brian then took his own as well. Let the parents of both Gabby and Brian mourn and remember them in peace.”

The credits of the documentary noted that the Laundries refused to share their side of the story in the series. One of the film’s directors, Julia Willoughby Nason, also confirmed in a pre-release interview with Today that, “[The Laundries] didn’t want to participate, and we respect that.”

Brian’s older sister, Cassie Laundrie, also addressed the documentary’s release and claimed she hadn’t spoken to her parents in almost two years. “If you’re new here. And just starting to attack me today. I’ve been non contact with my parents for almost two years. Have fun,” she wrote in a February 17 Instagram post.

Petito, an aspiring YouTuber, was traveling cross country in a van with her fiancé when she was reported missing on September 11, 2021.

Gabby’s strangled body, which a coroner confirmed showed “blunt-force injuries to the head and neck,” was discovered in Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest three weeks later. By then, Brian — who, along with his parents, refused to cooperate with police — had disappeared in a nature preserve near his family’s North Port, Florida, home, where he died by suicide on October 20, 2001.

In a notebook found near his remains a month later, Brian called Petito’s death an “unexpected tragedy.” He claimed she’d injured herself as they crossed a body of water while rushing back to their car before nightfall. Freezing and facing problems with her feet and wrist plus a “small bump on her forehead that eventually got larger,” she was “begging for an end to her pain.” So, “I ended her life,” Brian admitted. “I thought it was merciful, that it is what she wanted … ”

Petito’s parents, Nichole Petito and Joseph Petito, pursued legal action against Brian’s parents, alleging that the Laundries were aware their son had killed Petito but concealed that information from attorneys. In March 2022, Petito’s parents filed a civil lawsuit against Roberta and Christopher, claiming they knew the location of their daughter’s body before it was discovered in September 2021.

The case did not proceed to trial, as both families reached a settlement in February 2024. In the filing, Petito’s parents stated they sought damages for the emotional distress they endured due to the Laundrie family’s alleged actions.