North Port, Florida - In the summer of 2021, Gabby Petito was murdered by Brian Laundrie while on a road trip. Shortly before her death, she spoke with Moab police officers who were concerned about the couple's well-being after an argument. Now, a selfie of the young woman has been released, taken just days before the horrific crime, and people have questions.

In the photo, Gabby's face is visibly bruised, her mouth painfully contorted, and her eyes filled with tears. It's a horrific sight that – especially with the knowledge we have today – makes your blood turn cold.

Brian Stewart, the Petito family attorney who made the picture public on behalf of Gabby's parents, told People, "It is totally heartbreaking to see her hurt and scared and in need and to have her concerns ignored the way that it was."

Stewart's sentiments alluded to the fact that the photo was taken right after the couple had an argument, and just minutes before an eyewitness made an emergency call to police.

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Less than 15 minutes later, the uniformed officers pulled the couple over and apparently completely misjudged the situation.

During the police stop, Brian told the officers that he had been the victim in the situation, and the officers took the 23-year-old to a motel, leaving Gabby to spend the night in her van, as they had labeled her the aggressor.

The next day, the two seemingly continued their journey. That is, until Brian returned to Florida in Gabby's van – without Gabby.

Brian then became a person of interest in Gabby's disappearance before her body was found near a campsite at Grand Teton National Park, and her death was later ruled a homicide.

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But before Laundrie could really be questioned as a suspect, he disappeared. His remains were later found at a park in Florida, and his death was ruled a suicide. However, Brian seemingly confessed he killed Gabby in a notebook that was in a dry bag near the location his remains were found.

"We believe they [the police officers] would have better understood the danger she [Gabby] was in if they had questioned the injuries," Stewart continued.

"We believe she [Gabby] would be alive today if they [the police officers] had handled the matter properly."

While it's unclear so far why Gabby took the sad picture of herself, Stewart assumes she "knew she was in danger and that a line had been crossed."