Police Officer In Gabby Petito Utah Traffic Stop Promoted To Detective

MOAB, UTAH — One of the police officers involved in the fateful traffic stop in Utah in which Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie were let go after an altercation in her van has been promoted to detective, according to a story first reported by The Sun.

Eric E. Pratt was seen in a photo on the Moab City Police Department's Facebook page at an event with the words Detective E. Pratt embroidered into his shirt, The New York Post reported. He can also be seen in another photo on the Helen M. Knight Elementary School's page under an inspirational phrase that says "Believe in Yourself!" and notes that he is now the school district's School Resource Officer.

The designation of detective comes with larger responsibilities than patrol officers.

Pratt previously revealed to The Sun that he earned $25 per hour, however, a detective in Moab earns around $37, according to the outlet's research.

The Sun has reported that while Pratt was promoted, two other officers, including former chief Bret Edge, quit.

Pratt was the senior officer on the 911 call that lead to the now-infamous traffic stop, according to a report that was released after an investigation requested by the Moab City police.

Patch has reached out to Moab City spokeswoman Lisa Church for comment.

In a text to Patch, Church had this to say: "The city will not comment or provide interviews on any matters related to this pending litigation."

The 911 call was placed by a witness who saw Petito and Brian Laundrie fighting in a town nearby. The pair was later pulled over after Laundrie drove Petito's van into the side of a curb. In bodycam footage, Petito can be seen with tears streaming down her face as the two are interviewed about their interaction.

As police interview Petito and Laundrie, they determine that she hit Laundrie and they consider charging her, but they later decide to give the pair a break and let them go their separate ways for the night to cool off.

The bodycam surfaced during Petito's disappearance and raised speculation about how the incident was handled by the police officers involved and prompted the department to investigate. Petito's family recently announced plans to sue the department for $50 million over its handling of the traffic stop.

The incident was about two weeks before it is believed that Laundrie strangled Petito to death near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming in 2021.

In bodycam footage, which was obtained from the Moab City police, Petito, who was asked to step out of the van over to a police cruiser, tells officer Daniel Robbins, who was wearing the body camera, that Laundrie hit the curb because she "distracted him." She tells Robbins that she had been apologizing to Laundrie, explaining she was in a bad mood and was stressed out because she had been building a website for her blog.

Laundrie would not let her in the vehicle under the belief she needed to calm down, according to her statements in Robbins' footage.

"He really stresses me out," she said, then describes the altercation as "just a bad morning."

Laundrie then tells the officer that Petito "gets really worked up sometimes" and he was trying to distance himself from her, saying that he did shove her to get away from her, and apologizes to the officer because of that. Laundrie, who had visible scratches on his face, is then asked by the officer how he got them, and says that Petito "had her phone" and he was struggling with her as she was trying to take the keys to the van.

He then tells Robbins that the van struck the curb because she grabbed the steering wheel.

A group of officers, including Robbins, then discuss how to handle the situation and explain to Laundrie that, based on their investigation — including his and Petito's comments, as well as those of the witness — there was enough evidence to charge Petito with assault, but they were hampered because they live together and he did not want to press charges.

Instead, they told Laundrie that they did not have discretion under the law and suggested giving her a citation for domestic assault, which included a stay-away order. The stay-away order would be in effect for the night, preventing any contact between the two, and then if Laundrie wanted to have the order removed, he could do so the next morning, Robbins told him.

Petito did not want to be separated from Laundrie, though, according to another officer who interviewed her.

Near the end of the video, Robbins decides not to cite Petito for domestic assault and tells her, then suggests separating the pair for the night.

"I want you guys both to be — tonight — away from each other," he said, adding, "relax, breathe."

Petito started welling up with tears as he was speaking.

"There is no reason to be crying," he said. "I understand this can feel like a nightmare, but you are coming out the golden flower on top."

He tells Petito that she is taking the van for the night and Laundrie will be taken to a hotel, and urges them to stay away from each other for both of their sakes.

"From what you told me and what he told me, both of you guys have little things that have been building up and building up, and finally the little string that you guys were walking on broke," he said.

The officer then asks Petito if she wants him to let Laundrie know that she loves him and will see him in the morning, and she tells him yes, before adding that he needs to keep his cell phone charged because he is bad about keeping it charged.

It was later determined that Moab City police made unintentional mistakes in their handling of the incident, according to an independent review.

Capt. Brandon Ratcliffe, of the Price Police Department, which is located about two hours northwest of Moab, released his 102-page report in January, outlining a review of the incident where officers questioned Petito and Laundrie, about a potential assault that took place outside of a shop in Moab.

The report recommends both officers be placed on probation, and calls for additional training in domestic violence and legal issues so that officers have a better grasp of state laws and statutes, as well as upgraded software.

In a disclaimer, Ratcliffe says that while he had access to all of the reports and video footage, he would not pretend to have the same perception as the officers who investigated the case, noting there are many 'what-ifs' that have presented themselves as part of the investigation, with the primary one being: Would Gabby be alive today if this case was handled differently?”

“That is an impossible question to answer despite it being the answer many people want to know,” Ratcliffe wrote. “Nobody knows and nobody will ever know the answer to that question."

"My job is to provide information into the details of this investigation and if it was handled properly," he added.

Pratt said in the report that he was afraid charging Petito would embolden Laundrie.

"So, if he's going to bail her out, is he not going to have more control over her now?" Pratt said.

Pratt also told investigators that he was "desperately f---ed over," The Sun reported.

"I really am," he said. "I would have done anything to stop it if I would have known that was coming. I accept responsibility for it but I don't want anyone to think that I did not care. I am devastated about it. I cared that day and I still care."

Ratcliffe's report also faults the department for not getting a statement from the 911 caller who reported seeing the alleged assault.

The final police account did not recount the caller's initial report describing Laundrie as the aggressor, and it labeled the altercation instead a "mental health crisis."

Petito was reported missing by her mother in her hometown of Suffolk County after Laundrie returned to Florida in her van but without her, sparking a massive search that spanned several states. Petito was confirmed dead on Sept. 21.

Laundrie evaded speaking with police and ended up shooting himself in the head in a swamp near his parents' home. His remains were found in October.

In a notice of claim filed earlier this month, attorneys for Petito's family claim Moab police did not fully address a 911 caller who reported seeing Laundrie hit Petito outside of a Utah restaurant.

Police also did not act on the fact that she had cuts on her face, and that Laundrie had grabbed her face in a fight, the document states.

A close-up photo of Petito's face, not yet released to the public, shows blood smeared on her cheek and left eye, the notice of claim added.

The notice of claim names Pratt and Robbins, as well as Chief Bret Edge and Assistant Chief Braydon Palmer.

Laundrie "murdered Gabby Petito by strangling her and savagely inflicting blunt force trauma to her head," according to the notice of claim.

The notice of claim also said police did not question Laundrie about "inconsistencies" in his version of events but, instead, "determined Gabby was the primary aggressor."

Petito's family's lawyer, Brian C. Stewart, told The Sun that they had just learned about Pratt's promotion.

"The family hopes that Officer Pratt is committed to learning from his experience and the mistakes that were made in Gabby's case," he said.

"We hope he has received significant retraining in how to properly respond to domestic violence situations and how to apply the law correctly to protect victims, like Gabby."

Petito's family are asking members of the public around the world to light a candle on the anniversary of her death on Saturday. In a recent tweet, her mother, Nichole Schmidt, shared a Tik Tok video, adding the caption, "Let’s light up the sky all over the #world 8/27/22 #thelightremains #domesticviolence #spreadlove #NeverForget #missyou."

Lisa Finn contributed additional reporting to this story.

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