A Florida judge ruled Thursday that the family of Gabby Petito may proceed with a civil lawsuit against Brian Laundrie s parents, whom they say caused them emotional distress by hiding that their son had killed their daughter last year on a van trip across America.

Judge Hunter Carroll of the 12th Circuit Court of Florida ruled on the matter after Chris and Roberta Laundrie, Brians parents, requested that the lawsuit seeking damages of at least $100,000 be thrown out , saying they had no obligation to speak to law enforcement or the Petito family about what happened.

Though that may be true, Carroll ruled, the Petito family may still seek damages over the comments the family did make.

If the facts of this case were truly about silence with no affirmative action by the Laundries, the court would have resolved this case in the Laundries favor on the concept of legal duty, or more precisely, the lack of legal duty for the Laundries to act, Carroll wrote in his decision. Had the Laundries truly stayed silent, the court would have granted the motion to dismiss in the Laundries favor. But they did not stay silent.