The request made by Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of the 2022 slayings of four University of Idaho students, to have his grand jury indictment dismissed, has been denied by the Idaho Supreme Court.
According to Mr. Kohberger’s attorneys, they argued that the grand jurors were given inaccurate information regarding the standard for an indictment under Idaho law. They believed that the grand jurors were told that the standard is “probable cause” of the defendant’s guilt, when it should have been the higher threshold of “beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The Idaho Supreme Court was first asked on 8 February to appeal the decision of Latah County District Court Judge John Judge. The judge had declined to dismiss Mr. Kohberger’s grand jury indictment in the quadruple murder case.
The defendants aimed to have the indictment dismissed, citing a biased grand jury, inadmissible evidence, insufficient evidence, and prosecutorial misconduct.
The attorneys have also submitted a separate motion to seal Mr. Kohberger’s request. They have filed a “motion to seal defendant’s motion for permission to appeal from interlocutory orders.”
The Idaho Supreme Court denied his first motion, but agreed to keep the contents of his motion confidential.
A Ph.D. student from Washington State University, Mr. Kohberger, is facing charges for the deaths of Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin. He is being charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary.
Investigators compared the DNA found at the Kohberger family home in Pennsylvania to the trash, which ultimately led to the arrest of Mr. Kohberger.
Mr. Kohberger has chosen to waive his right to a speedy trial, and as a result, a trial date has not yet been set.
Mr. Kohberger’s defense team is currently pursuing a request to relocate the trial to another county.
On May 14th, a hearing will take place where the judge will listen to arguments concerning Mr. Kohberger’s request to relocate the trial from Latah County.
Mr. Kohberger’s legal team contends that the case’s extensive and inflammatory pretrial publicity, along with the small size of the community, makes it impossible to find a fair and impartial jury in Latah County.
