Idaho quadruple murder suspect Bryan Kohberger had his October trial delayed indefinitely after he waived his right to a speedy trial.
Kohberger, 28, was in a Moscow court on Wednesday to discuss various matters. He was set to go to trial in the coming months in connection to the grizzly murder of four college students.
No date was set for the future trial, which could now be in months or even years.
He faces four first-degree murder charges for the November 13 killings of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, in their off-campus home near the University of Idaho.
Judge John Judge confirmed with Kohberger if he would like to waive his right to a speedy trial to which the defendant replied, ‘Absolutely’.
Despite wanting to come to a resolution as soon as possible, the prosecution did not object – agreeing that this was the best option at this time, local news station KXLY reported.
Idaho quadruple murder suspect Bryan Kohberger had his October trial delayed indefinitely after he waived his right to a speedy trial
(L-R) Housemates Dylan Mortensen, Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen (on Kaylee’s shoulders) Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Bethany Funke
The defense said they were not ready to set a new trial date.
A hearing is still set for September 1, where a new trial date is expected to be discussed.
According to Idaho state law, the trial is set to begin within six months of indictment, which occurred in May in this case, or ‘there is an automatic acquittal.’
The defense is expected to file challenges against the grand jury indictment, as well as motions regarding cameras in the courtroom and witness instructions, according to the outlet.
This comes a week after his latest court appearance last Friday, when Judge John Judge set a deadline of September 15 for Kohberger to make the decision.
During the all-day hearing, relatives of slain University of Idaho student Kaylee Goncalves was allegedly seen taunting Kohberger with a pro-death penalty t-shirt.
The hearing saw the alleged quadruple murderer’s defense team justify the alibi presented this month – that he was out driving alone on the night of the murders – and to lay out challenges to the techniques used by authorities to gather DNA evidence.
During a break in the proceedings, one of Goncalves’ family members was seen wearing a t-shirt promoting the firing squad death penalty, according to investigative reporter Kevin Fixler.
In June, prosecutors indicated they would pursue the death penalty against Kohberger, and the nation’s struggles to obtain lethal injection drugs could mean he is given death by firing squad.
Fixler added that Kohberger appeared ‘relaxed’ during the proceedings, and even smirked as witnesses joked over scientific terms in the hearing.
The family of Goncalves shared an emotional message on a Facebook page hours before the hearing, expressing fear that Kohberger’s trial would be delayed.
‘Please pray for our family today,’ they wrote. ‘We want to get this trial over. Just thinking it could be years absolutely kills me.’
‘We are afraid he is going to waive his rights to a speedy trial,’ the post read. ‘If he does, trial will not be starting on Oct. 2 and it is very likely that it won’t take place for years.’
While the hearing was closed to the media and public, families of the victims were allowed to attend via Zoom.
The defense has so far focused on scrutinizing the process through which detectives identified Kohberger as a suspect.
Detectives relied on genetic genealogy to build their case against him, using genetic genealogy to build a a DNA profile from the DNA left on a knife sheath at the scene.
The FBI tracked down Kohberger by tracing his distant relatives through genetic genealogy databases – and then secretly collected a sample of his father’s DNA to confirm his identity.
Police say DNA found on a knife sheath left at the Idaho murders scene is a ‘statistical match’ to a cheek swab taken from the suspect after his arrest.
A sample of DNA left on the sheath is ‘at least 5.37 octillion times more likely to be seen if (the) Defendant is the source than if an unrelated individual randomly selected from the general population is the source,’ prosecutors said in the filing.
During previous hearing, prosecutors have insisted Kohberger provides witnesses that can support an alibi. However his defense said that ‘at this time there is not a specific witness to say precisely where Kohberger was’ on the night of the murders.
Bryan Kohberger, 28, was in court in Moscow for a status conference that saw his lawyers and prosecutors agree to keep the trial date as October 2
Kohberger’s lawyers have claimed he had a habit of ‘going for drives alone at night’ and did so on the night of the killings
One of the surviving roommates who was not attacked also said she saw the killer, and that he had ‘bushy eyebrows’ – another feature of Kohberger’s appearance
‘He was out, driving during the late night and early morning hours of November 12-13, 2022,’ attorneys said, adding that he ‘is not claiming to be at a specific location at a specific time.’
Prosecutors have demanded more specifics over his alleged alibi, and say that ‘driving in the area’ does not exonerate him and instead places him at the scene.
Kohberger’s lawyers have claimed he had a habit of ‘going for drives alone at night’ and did so on the night of the killings.
His team has also requested to compel prosecutors to disclose the DNA profiles they will use in court.
The defense also filed a request to delay the court proceedings to allow time to investigate potential procedural issues with the grand jury, which indicted him in May.
Alongside insisting upon his alibi, prosecutors also countered with a request to keep DNA profiles protected, while also filing motions over issues in the timeline of Kohberger’s upcoming trial.
Prosecutors are set to lay out a slew of evidence over the alleged crimes, including his DNA police say they found on a knife sheath that was left at the gruesome scene.
The other key piece of evidence prosecutors hope will convince a jury is Kohberger’s white Hyundai Elantra car, which was allegedly seen in the area in CCTV surveillance footage.
One of the surviving roommates who was not attacked also said she saw the killer, and that he had ‘bushy eyebrows’ – another feature of Kohberger’s appearance.
Idaho MurdersIdahoBreaking NewsMoscow
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