Man, 90, in court charged with 1970s sex offences
A former teacher has appeared in court accused of sexual offences against a boy at an independent school about 50 years ago.
Derek Barker, 90, is charged with three offences alleged to have taken place at Monkton Combe School in Bath in the 1970s, when he taught there.
Mr Barker, of Limpley Stoke, Wiltshire, appeared at Bath Magistrates' Court and spoke only to confirm his name, age and address during the brief hearing.
Magistrates were told the offences could only be dealt with at the crown court and sent the case for trial.
The defendant was released on unconditional bail and ordered to appear at Bristol Crown Court on 27 June.
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Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Reports: University of Idaho quadruple homicide suspect Bryan Kohberger expected to plead guilty on all charges, leaving one victim's family 'beyond furious'
Jun. 30—The 30-year-old accused of killing four University of Idaho students in 2022 appears poised to accept a plea deal that allows him to avoid both a trial and potentially a firing squad. Multiple media outlets reported Monday that 30-year-old Bryan Kohberger agreed to plead guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in connection with the deaths of UI seniors Madison Mogen, 21, of Coeur d'Alene; Kaylee Goncalves, 21, of Rathdrum; junior Xana Kernodle, 20, of Post Falls; and freshman Ethan Chapin, 20, of Mount Vernon, Washington. All four were stabbed to death at a rental home in Moscow. The broadcast corporations and local news outlets like the Idaho Statesman and KTVB cited a letter sent to families of the victims this week stating Kohberger intends to accept a plea agreement that does away with his right to an appeal and comes with a sentence of four consecutive life sentences for the murder charges, and an additional 10 years for burglary — the maximum allotted under state law. The plea deal allows Kohberger to avoid a trial that could have ended with a death sentence if found guilty. The letter prefaced Kohberger's change of plea by a few days, which is expected to happen at an 11 a.m. hearing Wednesday. The Goncalves family confirmed the letter and Kohberger's intent to plead guilty in a Facebook post Monday afternoon. The Spokesman-Review was unable to reach Kristi Goncalves, mother to Kaylee, or Maddie's father, Ben Mogen, ahead of publication. "We are beyond furious at the State of Idaho," the post reads. "They have failed us. Please give us some time. This was very unexpected. We appreciate all your love and support." Kohberger's attorneys approached the Latah County Prosecutor's Office earlier this month about a plea deal , ABC News reported. After meeting with family members who were available last week, the office made a formal offer to Kohberger. Latah County Prosecuting Attorney Bill Thompson called the agreement their "sincere attempt to seek justice" in the letter distributed to family members, according to a copy obtained by the Idaho Statesman. "We cannot fathom the toll that this case has taken on your family," Thompson wrote in the letter. "This resolution is our sincere attempt to seek justice for your family. This agreement ensures that the defendant will be convicted, will spend the rest of his life in prison, and will not be able to put you and the other families through the uncertainty of decades of post-conviction appeals." When reached by The Spokesman-Review Monday afternoon, Idaho State Supreme Court spokesperson Nate Poppino said, "I do not have any information I can confirm this evening." Kohberger, who is originally from Pennsylvania, declined to enter a plea at an arraignment in May 2023. A judge entered not guilty pleas to all charges on his behalf, and his defense has maintained his innocence over the more than two years leading up to his high-profile trial, which was moved from Moscow to Boise late last year. The trial was set to begin Aug. 18. In March, Idaho Gov. Brad Little signed into law House Bill 37, which made the firing squad the primary death penalty in Idaho.
Boston Globe
2 hours ago
- Boston Globe
What to know about Bryan Kohberger agreeing to plead guilty to murdering 4 University of Idaho students
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Chicago Tribune
6 hours ago
- Chicago Tribune
Bryan Kohberger to plead guilty to killing 4 University of Idaho students, multiple media report
BOISE, Idaho — Bryan Kohberger has agreed to plead guilty to murdering four University of Idaho students as part of a deal with prosecutors to avoid the death penalty, multiple media outlets reported Monday. The news was delivered to families of the victims in a letter from prosecutors, according to ABC News. Kohberger, 30, is accused in the stabbing deaths of Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves at a rental home near campus in Moscow, Idaho, in November 2022. Autopsies showed the four were all likely asleep when they were attacked, some had defensive wounds and each was stabbed multiple times. Goncalves' family expressed outrage in a Facebook post: 'We are beyond furious at the State of Idaho. They have failed us. Please give us some time. This was very unexpected.' Kohberger, then a criminal justice graduate student at Washington State University, was arrested in Pennsylvania weeks after the killings. Investigators said they matched his DNA to genetic material recovered from a knife sheath found at the crime scene. In a court filing, his lawyers said Kohberger was on a long drive by himself around the time the four were killed. The killings shook the small farming community of about 25,000 people, which hadn't had a homicide in about five years. The trial, which was scheduled to begin in August, was moved from rural northern Idaho to Boise after the defense expressed concerns that Kohberger couldn't get a fair trial in the county where the killings occurred. In Idaho, judges may reject plea agreements, though such moves are rare. If a judge rejects a plea agreement, the defendant is allowed to withdraw the guilty plea. Earlier Monday, a Pennsylvania judge had ordered that three people whose testimony was requested by defense attorneys would have to travel to Idaho to appear at Kohberger's trial. The defense subpoenas were granted regarding a boxing trainer who knew Kohberger as a teenager, a childhood acquaintance of Kohberger's and a third man whose significance was not explained. A gag order has largely kept attorneys, investigators and others from speaking publicly about the investigation or trial.
