Bryan Kohberger heading to infamous Idaho prison where inmates have complained of feces covered walls
Tucked away in a desolate area on the outskirts of the capital Boise, the Idaho Maximum Security Institution (IMSI), has earned a grim reputation for its harsh conditions with allegations of abusive guards, violent brawls, feces-covered recreation 'cages' and a dirty ventilation system described as being 'biohazard.'
The maximum-security facility houses some of the state's most dangerous criminals — including convicted killer Chad Daybell, the husband of 'Doomsday' cult mom Lori Vallow.
And now, 30-year-old Kohberger is expected to join them after he is sentenced later this month for the sayings of Maddie Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, a case that rocked the small college town of Moscow in November 2022, the New York Post reported.
In the two and a half years since Kohberger's arrest, his attorneys unsuccessfully attempted to bar prosecutors from seeking the death penalty and challenged DNA evidence, leaving a plea deal their final option to spare his life before the start of Kohberger's highly-anticipated trial in August.
Kohberger avoided the death penalty in pleading guilty to the crimes this week in exchange for spending the rest of his life in prison.
He has been held at the Ada County Jail in Boise under maximum security since the trial was moved from Moscow. But now he will live out the rest of his days at a remote prison about 10 miles south – a place surrounded by a double perimeter fence with razor wire, an electronic detection system, and 24-hour armed guards.
It's a place that was designed for what the Idaho Department of Correction describes as the state's 'most disruptive male residents.'
In 2024, the Security Journal Americas named IMSI one of the '15 Worst Prisons in America,' along with the Louisiana State Penitentiary known as The Farm, California's San Quentin, and New York's Attica Correctional Facility.
The unfavorable recognition came after 90 inmates went on a hunger strike demanding better treatment and services.
Reports at the time cited excessive use of solitary confinement, a lack of mental health resources, and a 'tense and volatile environment' stemming from overcrowding and inmate violence, according to the Idaho Statesman.
Solitary confinement at IMSI has long been a point of concern. In 2016, then-Director of the Idaho Department of Correction, Kevin Kempf, launched efforts to reform the practice, noting that many inmates were confined alone for up to 23 hours a day, with minimal human contact, meals delivered in their cells, and showers limited to three times a week — a routine that, for some, lasts years, local outlet KBOI reported.
'Ninety-seven percent of these guys are going to get out and walk into an Idaho community,' Kempf told KBOI at the time.
'If we treat them like animals, they're going to walk out of prison like that.'
For Kohberger, his likely transfer to IMSI would mark the beginning of the life sentence without the possibility of parole plea deal he accepted in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table.
The 11th hour bombshell decision came about just weeks before Kohberger's long-awaited trial was set to begin.
At his plea deal hearing on Wednesday, the former criminology student remained impassive as he admitted to breaking into the off-campus home and killing the four students who appeared to have no connection with him.
Prosecutors did not reveal a motive behind the slayings.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Bryan Kohberger Did Not Plan to Murder All 4 Victims, Suggests Prosecutor as He Fights Back Tears in Court
Prosecutor Bill Thompson said during a plea hearing on July 2 that the state could not offer evidence that Bryan Kohberger planned to kill all four of his victims Thompson said Kohberger first killed Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, but Goncalves had moved out of the home by the time of the murders and was just visiting for the weekend Xana Kernodle was killed after crossing paths with Kohberger as he was likely trying to leave the home, said Thompson, at which point she and Ethan Chapin were murderedBryan Kohberger did not plan to murder all four of his victims on the night of Nov. 13, 2022, according to the lead prosecutor in the case. The former criminology student, 30, entered the off-campus home of a group of University of Idaho students with the intention of killing one or two of his young victims, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson suggested in court on July 2. Thompson detailed how events transpired on the night of the murders after Kohberger confessed to killing the four victims: Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20. Towards the end of his 10-minute presentation, Thompson suddenly became overwhelmed with emotion and, after a brief pause, began to cry. He then finished his remarks trying to fight back those tears while telling Judge Steven Hippler: "As the defendant has just admitted and pleaded guilty, on November 13, 2022, Mr. Kohberger entered the residence at 1122 King Road in Moscow, Idaho. He did that with the intent to kill." Thompson then added: "We will not represent that he intended to commit all of the murders that he did that night, but we know that that is what resulted." The lawyer then finished his remarks by saying that even if Kohberger's actions were not planned, he did kill his four victims "intentionally, willfully, deliberately, with premeditation and with malice aforethought." Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Thompson explained to the court that on the night of the murders, Kohberger entered the victims' house through a sliding door on the second floor and immediately went to the third floor, where Mogen and Goncalves were laying in bed together. While not mentioned in Thompson's remarks, the family of Goncalves has previously said she had moved out of the home because she had lined up a job in Austin, but then decided to return to see her friends. This, and the fact that Kohberger went right to the third floor when there were two bedrooms on the second floor where he entered, suggests that Mogen, and possibly Goncalves, were Kohberger's initial targets. The other murders may have just been a result of an individual being in the wrong place at the wrong time. "The state's evidence would show that Xana Kernodle was still awake [when Mogen and Goncalves were stabbed]. In fact, Xana had taken a Door Dash order not long before this started." Thompson said that while Kohberger was either "coming down the stairs or leaving" he ran into Kernodle and stabbed her to death. Then he went into Kernodle's bedroom, said Thompson, where her boyfriend Ethan Chapin was asleep and killed him. "Each victim suffered multiple wounds," Thompson said, while also stressing there was no evidence or proof of sexual assault. Then, on his way out, Kohberger spared a life. Thompson said one of the two surviving roommates watched Kohberger exit through the second-floor sliding door with a container in his hand. That young woman then ran downstairs to the bedroom of the other surviving roommate, where they spent the night together, unaware that four people were dead upstairs. The man who ended the lives of those four victims will now spend the rest of his life in prison after making a deal with prosecutors, sparing him the death penalty. Kohberger's sentencing is scheduled for July 23. Read the original article on People
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Yahoo
Bryan Kohberger heading to infamous Idaho prison where inmates have complained of feces covered walls
Bryan Kohberger, who pleaded guilty this week to the brutal murders of four University of Idaho students, will likely spend the rest of his life in what's widely considered one of the worst prisons in the country. Tucked away in a desolate area on the outskirts of the capital Boise, the Idaho Maximum Security Institution (IMSI), has earned a grim reputation for its harsh conditions with allegations of abusive guards, violent brawls, feces-covered recreation 'cages' and a dirty ventilation system described as being 'biohazard.' The maximum-security facility houses some of the state's most dangerous criminals — including convicted killer Chad Daybell, the husband of 'Doomsday' cult mom Lori Vallow. And now, 30-year-old Kohberger is expected to join them after he is sentenced later this month for the sayings of Maddie Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, a case that rocked the small college town of Moscow in November 2022, the New York Post reported. In the two and a half years since Kohberger's arrest, his attorneys unsuccessfully attempted to bar prosecutors from seeking the death penalty and challenged DNA evidence, leaving a plea deal their final option to spare his life before the start of Kohberger's highly-anticipated trial in August. Kohberger avoided the death penalty in pleading guilty to the crimes this week in exchange for spending the rest of his life in prison. He has been held at the Ada County Jail in Boise under maximum security since the trial was moved from Moscow. But now he will live out the rest of his days at a remote prison about 10 miles south – a place surrounded by a double perimeter fence with razor wire, an electronic detection system, and 24-hour armed guards. It's a place that was designed for what the Idaho Department of Correction describes as the state's 'most disruptive male residents.' In 2024, the Security Journal Americas named IMSI one of the '15 Worst Prisons in America,' along with the Louisiana State Penitentiary known as The Farm, California's San Quentin, and New York's Attica Correctional Facility. The unfavorable recognition came after 90 inmates went on a hunger strike demanding better treatment and services. Reports at the time cited excessive use of solitary confinement, a lack of mental health resources, and a 'tense and volatile environment' stemming from overcrowding and inmate violence, according to the Idaho Statesman. Solitary confinement at IMSI has long been a point of concern. In 2016, then-Director of the Idaho Department of Correction, Kevin Kempf, launched efforts to reform the practice, noting that many inmates were confined alone for up to 23 hours a day, with minimal human contact, meals delivered in their cells, and showers limited to three times a week — a routine that, for some, lasts years, local outlet KBOI reported. 'Ninety-seven percent of these guys are going to get out and walk into an Idaho community,' Kempf told KBOI at the time. 'If we treat them like animals, they're going to walk out of prison like that.' For Kohberger, his likely transfer to IMSI would mark the beginning of the life sentence without the possibility of parole plea deal he accepted in exchange for taking the death penalty off the table. The 11th hour bombshell decision came about just weeks before Kohberger's long-awaited trial was set to begin. At his plea deal hearing on Wednesday, the former criminology student remained impassive as he admitted to breaking into the off-campus home and killing the four students who appeared to have no connection with him. Prosecutors did not reveal a motive behind the slayings.
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Yahoo
‘Disgusted': Bryan Kohberger's former friends, peers react to guilty murder plea
Childhood friends of Bryan Kohberger, who pleaded guilty Wednesday to stabbing four University of Idaho students to death in November 2022, have tracked his murder case from afar and said they felt shocked the former Pennsylvania resident suddenly agreed to a plea deal to spare his life. 'I won't lie, I kind of spiraled yesterday,' Casey Arntz, 32, told the Idaho Statesman in a text Thursday. 'Did he ever have thoughts like that before? Did he ever think that he wanted to kill me or my friends? Were we spared because we were friends with him?' Arntz and her younger brother, Thomas, grew up together with Kohberger in the Pocono Mountains near the Pennsylvania state line with New Jersey among a small circle of friends. They spent time together playing video games after school, as well as getting outdoors in the heavily forested region. As Kohberger got into drugs in high school, they said, a distance developed. Kohberger later overcame a heroin addiction. With the sporadic exception, they hadn't spoken in years, which made his arrest at his parents' Pennsylvania home in December 2022 so startling. He had been their awkward, chubby teenage friend, with heightened ability to observe and wit to match, they said. Now he was accused of killing four students on the other side of the country in a nationally known investigation that unimaginably ended in their hometown. The victims were Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, both 21, and Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, both 20. Each suffered multiple wounds in the attack at an off-campus home on King Road in Moscow, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson told the court Wednesday. The allegations floored them then, and similar emotions rushed back this week after Kohberger, 30, admitted he repeatedly stabbed the four college undergraduates with a large, fixed-blade knife that prosecutors said he bought on Amazon in March 2022 while living in Pennsylvania. Kohberger brought the knife and Ka-Bar brand leather sheath — which he left behind with his DNA at the crime scene — with him on his move a few months later to Pullman for a Ph.D. program at Washington State University. On Wednesday, Kohberger pleaded guilty to the four counts of first-degree murder and a count of felony burglary to avoid a possible death sentence at trial. He agreed to maximum sentences for each, which is likely to see him spend the rest of his life in prison. Kohberger will have no chance of parole and he can never file an appeal, according to the terms of the agreement. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for July 23. Donna Yozwiak, Kohberger's high school guidance counselor, reacted with surprise. 'Actually, I was hoping that he was not the murderer who killed these four students,' she said in an email to the Statesman. 'I hope that his family will survive this horrendous ordeal and be able to get on with their lives. I also hope that the victims' relatives gain much needed closure and heal after this tragedy. 'As a society, we may never know the motivation for the murders or if Bryan Kohberger has any remorse for his violent actions.' Kohberger's admissions in court finally put any question of his culpability to bed for Jack Baylis, 31, another of their group of friends at the time. 'You wouldn't plead guilty to it unless you did that,' he said in a phone interview Thursday. 'If you were framed, you'd be fighting tooth and nail.' Kohberger's decision to take people's lives was additionally disheartening, he said, because he had kicked his drug habit and seemingly had a life direction. But the desire to learn about people who commit murder — an area of interest for Kohberger — took hold, and he likely wanted to see whether he could get away with the perfect crime, Baylis said. 'I think he did it to see what it felt like, to experience it. If he wanted to write a paper about what killers feel and why they kill, to be accurate, you have to experience it yourself to truly understand it,' Baylis said. 'To get into the mind of a killer, you have to be a killer, would be my guess.' Casey Arntz told the Statesman she had conflicting emotions about how, after 2 ½ years of legal proceedings, her former friend acknowledged he was responsible for the early morning quadruple homicide — perhaps the most talked-about crime in Idaho history. She felt for the victims' families, especially those upset that the death penalty was no longer an option with the plea bargain, but welcomed the case nearing its conclusion. 'I'm disgusted that he could actually do something so heinous,' she said. 'I understand why the families are so upset, they were starved for justice, and I would 100% be, too. However, there was never any guarantee that he'd be given the death penalty. So I think him taking the plea deal was better for everyone. 'He's locked up for life. Let the inside deal with him.' Thomas Arntz, 29, shared his sister's sentiments. The result Wednesday removed any chance his childhood friend could be acquitted and get away with murder, he said. 'I personally feel relieved with the acceptance of the guilty plea,' Arntz told the Statesman, adding he would pray for the four victims' families. 'I am deeply sorry that Bryan's parents have to live with this as well. … I've always thought they were kind people, and they didn't deserve this. And for Bryan, God have mercy on his soul.' For Ben Roberts, 33, a former criminology graduate school colleague of Kohberger's at WSU, Wednesday's guilty pleas felt past due. The U.S. justice system is built upon the belief that a person is innocent until proven guilty, he said, and yet his former classmate's DNA at the crime scene, with no other suspects, strengthened his own suspicions. Still, Kohberger's arrest left him 'horrified,' he recalled. 'What surprises me at this point is that it dragged out so long, as I thought that a plea deal would never be reached,' Roberts told the Statesman by phone Thursday. 'My general impression was he was not going to stop fighting it, and to all of sudden have this about-face was very surprising — but a pleasant surprise.' Roberts spent several weeks just a few desks away from Kohberger in the days leading up to the close of the fall 2022 semester — just days and weeks after the murders. His graduate school classmate rarely exhibited much in the way of emotion around him, but also did not necessarily set off any red flags, he said. 'I noticed that unless he was deliberately trying to put on an appearance — if he didn't have the mask — he was kind of nonexistent, or hollow, I guess,' Roberts said. 'It's kind of like you're staring into an abyss. There's something human supposed to be there, and it isn't.' A casual hunter, Roberts said he's felt bad in the past when he's shot and killed a deer. He said he couldn't even fathom stabbing a person to death. 'I just can't even begin to get inside the head of somebody who could do something like that, and then attend class like it's business as usual,' Roberts said. 'That's just completely alien to me.' Roberts said he did not watch Wednesday's change-of-plea hearing. He didn't want to hear Kohberger's voice or see his face again, even though the latter has been difficult to escape the past two years, he noted. He was glad the high-profile case finally came to an end, and without the need for a monthslong trial. 'The first thing I said was that it was about damned time that the poor thing was put to rest,' Roberts said. For now, the court's gag order in the closely watched case, which restricts attorneys and their agents — including members of law enforcement for the state — is still in effect. Thompson asked that it remain so through sentencing, which Kohberger's defense did not oppose. The University of Idaho released a statement this week after word broke that Kohberger planned to change his plea to guilty in the shocking crime. 'We keep the families of the victims in our hearts as each deals with this outcome in their own way,' the state's namesake university wrote in the statement. 'We will never forget the four incredible lives taken on King Road, they are forever Vandals and each holds a place in our Vandal Family. Since that fateful day in November 2022 our university has become stronger, more intent on its purpose and more supportive of each other. And while we will not forget, we will heal.' Similarly, Moscow Mayor Art Bettge, in office in 2022 when the murders took place and upended the community, shared optimism that the city's residents might finally be freed from the clutches of the tragic incident. 'I recognize and understand that we all desire justice for the victims and their families,' he said in an emailed statement. 'My heart, and that of our entire community, go out to the families of the victims. It is my hope that this resolution can begin to provide a small measure of closure for the families and our community. What is clear is that no matter what form justice would have taken, nothing will bring back Ethan, Madison, Xana, and Kaylee, and our world will be forever darkened because of it.' WSU's comment after Kohberger's hearing was more succinct. A Statesman request to speak with professors in its criminal justice and criminology department who knew and taught Kohberger, including the semester he killed the U of I students, was again declined. 'Our hearts go out to the families, friends and colleagues impacted,' WSU's statement read. 'We do not have anything to add at this time.' After Wednesday's hearing, one main question remains for everyone, including the victims' families: Why? Why did Bryan Kohberger choose to take these four young lives, thereby essentially also ending his own, to some degree? That question was on the mind of Casey Arntz, Kohberger's Pennsylvania friend thrust into the spotlight and forced to deal with her own form of grief over the past two-plus years. 'I wasn't as close to him as my brother or my other friends, but we still hung out and talked a lot,' she said. 'He was in my parents' house. I was alone with him. 'I guess the one thing I would say to him is what everyone wants to say to him: 'Why would you do this? Why would you take the innocent lives of four beautiful people?' I can't even begin to imagine what he would say. How does someone justify their actions when they're so morbid?'
