A judge has granted Bryan Kohberger’s request to move his quadruple murder trial from Latah County, Idaho.
The ruling dated Sept. 6 noted presumed prejudice in the potential jury pool and Latah County’s ability to hold such a high-profile trial with limited resources and staffing. The ruling did not state where the trial, currently scheduled for June 2025, will be held.
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Kohberger is charged with the brutal murders of Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves at their rental home near the University of Idaho.
Six weeks after they were stabbed to death, Kohberger was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania.
For months, Kohberger’s attorneys had been fighting to have his trial moved from Latah County to Ada County, where Lori Vallow and Chad Daybell stood trial.
Following a recent hearing, Judge John Judge called the decision to move the trial one of the hardest decisions of his career.
Last week, Kohberger’s defense filed over a dozen motions seeking to strike aggravating factors and the death penalty itself. His defense claims the methods by which the death penalty is carried out in Idaho are unconstitutional.
The attorneys also claim “Idaho’s statutory and constitutional guarantee to a speedy trial prevents effective assistance of counsel in death penalty cases,” and “a capital case cannot be prepared in ten months.”
According to court records, Judge John Judge will hear arguments on the challenge to the death penalty on Nov. 7.
This story was originally published by Ivy Brown at CourtTV.com.
