Latest news with #guiltyPlea
Washington Post
03-07-2025
- Washington Post
Guilty plea doesn't end quest for more details in Idaho college student slayings
With a series of 'yes' replies to a judge, a man accused of killing four Idaho college students pleaded guilty in exchange for life in prison and no death penalty. But left untold so far: What motivated Bryan Kohberger to commit the middle-of-the-night knife attacks and why those victims? More details could emerge when Kohberger returns to court for his sentence on July 23. Some answers could also be in the hundreds of documents filed by prosecutors and defense lawyers that have been under seal and out of public view starting in 2022.
Yahoo
03-07-2025
- Yahoo
Bryan Kohberger's motive: What we know after guilty plea
The Brief Prosecutors laid out key evidence against Bryan Kohberger this week after he agreed to plead guilty to killing four University of Idaho students at their rental home in 2022. Although prosecutors have painted a clearer picture of what happened that night, they still haven't answered key questions about the case. A gag order remains in effect for attorneys on both sides until after Kohberger is sentenced July 23. Bryan Kohberger has agreed to plead guilty to killing four University of Idaho students in Moscow, Idaho, more than two and a half years after the quadruple stabbing shocked the small farming town. On Wednesday, the lead prosecutor on the case presented his key evidence at a court hearing, detailing what led investigators to charge Kohberger with killing Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Madison Mogen in their rental home near campus on Nov. 13, 2022. Kohberger's guilty plea allows him to avoid the death penalty, but it also leaves a lot of questions that could have been answered at trial. What we know Kohberger, now 30, had begun a doctoral degree in criminal justice at nearby Washington State University — across the state line from Moscow, Idaho — months before the crimes. RELATED: Bryan Kohberger accepts plea deal in Idaho student murders case What they're saying "The defendant has studied crime," lead prosecutor Bill Thompson said. "In fact, he did a detailed paper on crime scene processing when he was working on his Ph.D., and he had that knowledge skillset. What we don't know Although prosecutors have painted a clearer picture of what happened that night, they still haven't answered why Kohberger picked that house and those victims. They also haven't said whether Kohberger knew any of the people he reportedly killed. "We do not have evidence that the defendant had direct contact with 1122 or with residents in 1122, but we can put his phone in the area on those times," Thompson said, referring to the house number where the murders took place. Dig deeper While the motive remains unclear, prosecutors say Kohberger went to great lengths to cover up his heinous crimes. He reportedly drove backroads to his apartment in Pullman, Washington, to avoid surveillance cameras on the major roads and didn't turn his cell phone back on until 4:48 a.m. By 5:26 a.m., he was back in Pullman, Thompson said. Later, Kohberger changed his car registration from Pennsylvania to Washington State — significant for investigators who were combing through surveillance camera footage because Pennsylvania law doesn't require a front license plate, making it harder to identify the vehicle. And by the time investigators did catch up with him weeks later, his apartment and office in nearby Pullman were scrubbed clean. "Spartan would be a kind characterization. There was nothing there, nothing of evidentiary value was found," Thompson said of Kohberger's apartment. The car, too, "had been essentially disassembled inside," he added. "It was spotless. The defendant's car had been meticulously cleaned inside." The night of the murders, Kohberger left behind the knife sheath that held the murder weapon, and along with it his DNA. Investigators worked with the FBI and a local sanitation department to secretly retrieve garbage from the Pennsylvania home of Kohberger's parents, conducting a "trash pull" during the night that led them to a Q-tip used by Kohberger's father. That was enough for authorities to arrest Kohberger at his parents' home in Pennsylvania. He had driven there for the holidays after the murders. The victims' families are divided over the plea deal. Chapin's and Mogen's families support the deal. RELATED: Bryan Kohberger plea deal angers victims' families "We now embark on a new path. We embark on a path of hope and healing," Mogen's family said in a statement. The other side The family of Kaylee Goncalves publicly denounced the plea deal ahead of Wednesday's hearing and her father refused to attend the proceedings. Goncalves 18-year-old sister, Aubrie Goncalves, said in a Facebook post that "Bryan Kohberger facing a life in prison means he would still get to speak, form relationships, and engage with the world." "Meanwhile, our loved ones have been silenced forever," she wrote. What's next Some of the evidence that won't come out at trial might still be found in court documents, but those remain sealed until after a July 23 sentencing hearing. A gag order in place for all attorneys in the case is still in effect as well. Those documents include witness lists, a list of exhibits, an analysis of the evidence, requests for additional discovery, filings about mitigating factors and various unsuccessful defense motions that sought to introduce alternative suspects, among other things. It's not clear whether Kohberger's motive for the grisly killings will be revealed when the gag order is lifted. The Source This report includes information from The Associated Press and previous LiveNow from FOX reporting.
Fox News
02-07-2025
- Fox News
49ers star George Kittle praises Iowa alum Caitlin Clark
All times eastern Making Money with Charles Payne FOX News Radio Live Channel Coverage WATCH LIVE: Bryan Kohberger expected to plead guilty to murders of four University of Idaho students
Daily Mail
02-07-2025
- Daily Mail
Crucial question Bryan Kohberger must answer at Idaho murders plea deal hearing today: Live updates
Bryan Kohberger will appear in court today in the hopes of pleading guilty to the murders of four Idaho college students. Kohberger, 30, has agreed to plead guilty to all charges in the murders of four University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen and Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin after more than two years of fighting and legal wrangling. The plea deal was struck in the past few days, just weeks before his trial was to begin - and after his attorneys tried but failed to have execution stricken as a possible punishment. He is due to appear before Idaho Fourth Judicial District Judge Steven Hippler in Boise at 11am MDT (1pm EST) to enter his guilty plea, but the judge must approve the plea deal. If the deal is accepted, Kohberger would likely be sentenced in July. Kohberger's team contacted prosecutors to ask about a plea deal last week as his defense - including claims of an 'alternate perpetrator' and arguments that his life should be spared due to a recent autism diagnosis - fell apart. The plea bargain has drawn mixed reactions from the victims' families, with some expressing support while others remain outraged that Kohberger will live and could spend his days in prison capitalizing on his crimes by writing a book or chatting publicly about the horror mass-stabbing. 11:37 Famed criminology professor fears she may have 'inspired' Idaho murders Dr. Katherine Ramsland, who has long been an expert in the field of serial killers and once wrote a book with the BTK strangler, taught four different undergraduate and graduate courses to Bryan Kohberger at DeSales University in Pennsylvania. Ramsland - who called Kohberger 'a promising student who could have made a mark' on the field of forensic psychology - initially refused to believe he could be capable of killing, even after his arrest. But as she investigated the case more, Ramsland began to believe Kohberger may be responsible and was forced to ask herself a tough question: 'Did I inspire him?' Professor who taught Kohberger fears she may have 'inspired' murders Dr. Katherine Ramsland taught Kohberger in four different undergraduate and graduate courses at DeSales University in Pennsylvania beginning in 2018. 11:33 How Bryan Kohberger could still be sentenced to death despite his plea bargain Bryan Kohberger will appear in court today and is expected to take a plea deal accepting his guilt on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary. Under the terms of the deal, Kohberger will now avoid the death penalty - and the firing squad - instead being sentenced to life without the possibility of parole, while waiving all right to appeal his conviction or sentence down the line. The shock move, just weeks before his trial was due to get underway, has been slammed by some of the victims' families who had wanted to see their loved ones' killer receive the ultimate punishment. But a loophole in the deal means the 30-year-old criminology PhD graduate's fight for his life might not be over just yet. Loophole in Kohberger's deal means he could still face death penalty The 30-year-old will appear in court Wednesday where he is expected to take a plea deal accepting his guilt on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary.
