Gabby Petito is most likely a name you’ve heard many times over the past few days. If you haven’t, she was a bright, lively young woman who went missing on August 25th. On Instagram, she was documenting her travels through various national parks with her fiance, Brian Laundrie, when her family noticed an abrupt halt in their communication with her. Laundrie then returned to his home in Florida on September 1st, without her, and refused to cooperate with police. Eventually, Petito’s family filed a missing persons report and the case blew up online. After hiding with his family of enablers for a few days, like a coward, Laundrie has seemingly been on the run since September 14th. Less than a month after her last Instagram post, the FBI confirmed Gabby’s remains had been found and identified on September 21st. What’s notable to me is how exactly Gabby was found. A YouTuber editing some footage recognized the couple’s white van, which had been blasted all over social media by this point, and immediately contacted authorities with information regarding the location of the sighting. Her remains were found in the surrounding area quickly after this report came in.
Over 543,000 people went missing in the United States in 2020 alone. Can you imagine what this type of consistent media coverage could do for so many other missing persons cases? Gabby’s case is a step in the right direction when considering the power of social media for generating awareness and tips, but there are still issues we need to address in the true crime world. How many more documentaries do we need on Ted Bundy, on John Wayne Gacy, on Richard Ramirez, on Jeffery Dahmer? At some point I think we need to recognize that we have learned all we can learn from those monsters, and instead put that same energy into uplifting the voices of those advocating for ongoing unsolved cases. There are so many unrelenting families who have been emotionally battered and ripped apart, screaming into the void for the same help we gave Gabby. This isn’t over when Brian is found. This isn’t over when he’s convicted. This is an ongoing crisis that affects more people than we can fathom.
Here’s some background on my relationship with true crime: I love it. It’s even in my Her Campus writer’s bio. But there is a significant distinction between interest and obsession. I grew up around Forensic Files and Criminal Minds, but it wasn’t until high school that I really dived into true crime. For me, I listened to hours and hours of brutality via podcasts, such as Crime Junkie and Morbid, so I could know how to better protect myself. I’m a 5’4” woman and 110 pounds with no upper arm strength — I don’t have much of a shot at overpowering a man physically (at least not yet, I plan on taking some self defense classes eventually). So, I decided to be proactive about my personal safety through knowledge:
- Always check under my car before I get in. Someone could be hiding underneath and waiting for me.
- Always check my back seat before I get in. Someone could be hiding and waiting for me.
- Always lock my car doors immediately after I get in. Someone could try and open the doors to grab me.
- If there’s something on my windshield or near my car, don’t pick it up. That’s a sex trafficking tactic.
- If I hear a baby crying, I can’t investigate myself because that’s a sex trafficking tactic to lure women.
- Don’t wear ponytails, they’re easier for someone to grab.
- Don’t look at my phone when walking around by myself. Someone might take that as me being distracted and an easy target.
- Don’t walk around by myself. If I do, I constantly check my surroundings and make it obvious. If anyone is watching me, they’ll hopefully see me as a harder target.
- Always have my self defense keychain ready (go for the eyes)
- Never, NEVER, open the door when I’m home alone.
These are just a few safety related ideas and tips that run through my mind at least a couple times each and every day. And I learned them all through true crime related media. I know there are many others who are interested in this topic for the same reasons, for logical reasons, but there’s also many who have more questionable motives. For example, a few months ago, I joined a true crime group on Facebook in an attempt to find new podcast recommendations. For the most part, the people in the group were chill, but every so often there would be a weirdo who posted the “cool” new Ted Bundy shirt they got. Yeah you heard me right. There are people out there who proudly display home decor, apparel, and more that have serial killers’ quotes and faces plastered all over them. How sick and deranged is that? Can you imagine being a part of a victim’s family and seeing their murderer’s face on a stranger’s shirt walking down the street? And bringing it back to the numerous, repetitive documentaries we have been subjected to as a society, can you imagine what that must do to the victim’s families — to have to relive that trauma every single time the entertainment industry has decided it’s time to film yet another movie glorifying these monsters’ actions? With every movie, podcast, and book that is released about these already well known killers, we are giving them exactly what they wanted and we’re also wasting time that could have been spent on unsolved cases. We’re giving them infamy, and it’s dangerous. I have seen literal fan accounts for Ted Bundy on Twitter. Whether those account holders intend for that to be a “joke” or not, it’s one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen, showcasing the absolute worst of humanity.
On a similar note, a lot of the TikToks I saw concerning Gabby’s case were repulsive. This isn’t some exciting, mysterious puzzle for you to solve about a fictional character. Gabby was a real person. I’m not saying true crime shouldn’t exist anymore. It’s important to learn and grow from these horrific events, and the positive power of social media awareness is obvious in this case. But I think people who enjoy true crime, myself included, need to understand and realize that supporting and uplifting victims’ families is the most important thing we have to do. As well as not seeing them as just victims, but real people who had relationships and brothers and sisters and favorite tv shows and favorite songs and favorite foods and aspirations and goals. But their one opportunity to do that themselves was ripped away from them because of one decision made by one person. The least we can do is show them respect. The least we can do is prioritize getting them justice over entertainment value.
I really hope this wasn’t too rambly or scattered, but true crime is such a unique, complex landscape that can be very hard to navigate. I’m definitely not perfect and still have a lot of learning to do myself, but I felt it was necessary to share these ideas and questions with you all, considering Gabby’s recent viral case. I’d like to end by mentioning that earlier this year, the FBI compiled a list of 43 active missing persons cases that need new leads. All of these individuals were under 21 at the time of their disappearance. Some of these cases have been cold for decades. Please make the time to look through this list, if only briefly, to keep their cases open and raise awareness for their loved ones who have been missing them for years.
- Daniel Barter (4 years old, 1959)
- William “Billy” Ebeneezer Jones Jr. (3 years old, 1962)
- Christine Marie Eastin (19 years old, 1971)
- Margaret Ellen Fox (14 years old, 1974)
- David Williams (12 years old, 1975) & Steve Anderson (17 years old, 1975)
- Tammy Mahoney (19 years old, 1981)
- Anthonette Christine Cayedito (9 years old, 1986)
- Tara Leigh Calico (19 years old, 1988)
- Ilene Beth Misheloff (13 years old, 1989)
- Mark Himebaugh (11 years old, 1991)
- Crystal Ann Tymich (6 years old, 1994)
- Cayce Lynn McDaniel (14 years old, 1996)
- Kristen Modafferi (18 years old, 1997)
- Suzanne G. Lyall (19 years old, 1998)
- Karla Rodriguez (7 years old, 1999)
- Asha Jaquilla Degree (9 years old, 2000)
- Steven Earl Kraft, Jr. (12 years old, 2001)
- Bethany Leanne Markowski (11 years old, 2001)
- Shausha Latine Henson (2 months old, 2001) and Shaina Ashley Kirkpatrick (3 years old, 2001)
- Wesley Dale Morgan (2 years old, 2001)
- Diamond Yvette Bradley (3 years old, 2001) and Tionda Z. Bradley (10 years old, 2001)
- Rachel Louise Cooke (19 years old, 2002)
- Alexis S. Patterson (7 years old, 2002)
- Tabitha Danielle Tuders (13 years old, 2003)
- Joshua Keshaba Sierra Garcia (1 year old, 2003)
- Amber Elizabeth Cates (16 years old, 2004)
- Ashley Summers (14 years old, 2007)
- Kyron Richard Horman (7 years old, 2010)
- Shanna Genelle Peoples (19 years old, 2011)
- Keiosha Marie Felix (15 years old, 2012)
- Myra Lewis (2 years old, 2014)
- Kaylah Hunter (9 years old, 2014) and Kristian Justice (7 months old, 2014)
- Belel Kandil (8 years old, 2014) and Amina Kandil (10 years old, 2014)
- Sara Nicole Graham (18 years old, 2015)
- Arianna Fitts (2 years old, 2016)
- Lashaya Stine (16 years old, 2016)
- Sunny Sramek (18 years old, 2019)
- Dulce Maria Alavez (5 years old, 2019)