Boxing trainer, 2 others must testify at Bryan Kohberger's Idaho murders trial, judge rules
The subpoenas were granted for a boxing trainer who knew Kohberger as a teenager, a childhood acquaintance of Kohberger's and a third man whose significance was not explained. Their testimonies had been requested by Kohberger's defense team.
Kohberger, 30, is accused of sneaking into a rental home in Moscow, Idaho, not far from the University of Idaho campus, and killing Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves on Nov. 13, 2022. He was arrested weeks later at his parents' home in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, and now faces four murder charges in addition to another charge for burglary.
The students' deaths shocked the rural Idaho community and neighboring Pullman, Washington, where Kohberger was a graduate student studying criminology at Washington State University.
A prison official came to court with records from Kohberger's stay in the Monroe County Correctional Facility after he was arrested, although the subpoena hearing was continued because he must still provide a statement attesting to their authenticity.
Common Pleas Judge Arthur Zulick also continued for a week the hearing regarding a subpoena for Ralph Vecchio, who owns a car dealership where Kohberger's parents purchased a Hyundai Elantra in 2019.
There was uncertainty about whether the subpoena was directed at Vecchio or at his father, who owned the business at the time of the purchase. The judge said prosecution witness subpoenas will also be at issue next week.
A sixth witness' hearing had previously been rescheduled for next week because of a travel conflict, and the seventh person sought by the defense consented last week to travel to Idaho for the trial expected to begin in August.
Brandon Andreola argued unsuccessfully that his subpoena should be canceled, saying he is his family's sole breadwinner and is worried publicity might lead to him losing his job.
Andreola said his "relationship with Bryan Kohberger has been minimal and distant since high school," with their last "significant interaction" taking place in 2020, two years before the stabbings.
A flyer seeking information about the killings of four University of Idaho students who were found dead is displayed on a table along with buttons and bracelets on Nov. 30, 2022, during a vigil in memory of the victims in Moscow, Idaho.
Ted S. Warren / AP
"If I'm brought out there, I believe the attention will be multiple times greater than the attention that I've received already," Andreola argued.
Jesse Harris said he trained Kohberger as a 15- or 16-year-old at a boxing gym but does not think he has testimony that will help the case. Harris also said a relative's health problems were an issue and he is needed to run a small construction company.
Zulick approved the summonses for Andreola and Harris, along with a third one for witness Anthony Somma, who did not oppose it. Zulick said Harris can return to his courtroom if his family member's health issues become a barrier to Harris' ability to travel to Idaho.
Kohberger's trial is on track to begin Aug. 11 in Boise, Idaho, after a judge declined his lawyer's request for a delay last week. Fourth District Judge Steven Hippler, of Idaho, told the defense team he would not postpone the trial in a ruling that also rejected their request to present theories suggesting the possibility of "alternate perpetrators." The judge wrote that the evidence for those theories presented by the defense is "entirely irrelevant." Opening arguments will likely take place around Aug. 18, according to that ruling.
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
In a court filing, his lawyers said Kohberger was on a long drive by himself around the time the four were killed.
Kohberger was silent during his arraignment, prompting a judge to enter a not guilty plea on his behalf.
A gag order has largely kept attorneys, investigators and others from speaking publicly about the investigation or trial. The defense team's lawyer in the Monroe County Courthouse on Monday, Abigail Parnell, declined to comment.
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