Kohberger defense must file evidence for other suspects in Idaho murder trial

Nicole Blanchard and Kevin Fixler, Idaho Statesman on May 15, 2025

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BOISE, Idaho — The defense team for the man accused in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students plans to argue the possibility of alternative perpetrators at his upcoming murder trial, the judge confirmed during the last scheduled pretrial conference Thursday.

Judge Steven Hippler, of Idaho’s 4th Judicial District, said during the hearing that the defense for Bryan Kohberger asked to seal its allegations regarding another culprit or culprits, which he granted.

But Hippler warned the defense that it needed to provide two things by the end of next week: evidence, rather than just allegations; and an argument in support of the admissibility of its case. The judge said the defense’s information was “potentially fairly objectionable in terms of admissibility.”

Hippler directed the defense to file additional briefs by May 23, and prosecutors to respond by June 6. Hippler scheduled a hearing on the matter for June 18.

Kohberger, 30, is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in the November 2022 stabbing deaths of the four U of I students at a home near the Moscow campus. At the time, he was a Ph.D. student in the criminal justice and criminology department at Washington State University in nearby Pullman.

From left, University of Idaho students Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin were killed in a November 2022 attack at an off-campus house on King Road in Moscow. Idaho Statesman graphic Provided photos

The four victims were Madison Mogen, 21, of Coeur d’Alene; Kaylee Goncalves, 21, of Rathdrum; Xana Kernodle, 20, of Post Falls; and Ethan Chapin, 20, of Mount Vernon, Washington. The three women lived in the home on King Road with two female roommates who went physically unharmed in the attack. Chapin was Kernodle’s boyfriend and stayed over for the night.

It’s not the first time Kohberger’s defense has raised the possibility of an alternative perpetrator or perpetrators. Lead defense attorney Anne Taylor told the court last month that her team is investigating a tip about a different suspect. A defense expert who may testify at trial believes the crime would have required two perpetrators and two weapons, she said.

Police arrested Kohberger in late December 2022 after a nearly seven-week manhunt and a Latah County grand jury unanimously indicted him. There, a judge entered a not guilty plea on Kohberger’s behalf in May 2023, and his case was later moved to Boise for trial.

If a jury finds Kohberger guilty, prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty.

Kohberger’s capital murder trial in Boise is set to begin with jury selection in late July. It is scheduled to last into November if sentencing is necessary with a conviction.

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