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Bryan Kohberger, the man charged with fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students, has asked a judge to let him wear civilian clothing to trial instead of a jailhouse orange jumpsuit.
Kohberger, 29, is accused of killing the students at their off-campus house in 2022. He was a criminology Ph.D. student at Washington State University in Pullman at the time of the murders. The universities are a short drive away from each other.
The defendant has been wearing suits to court ever since his first initial court appearances in 2023.
His attorneys previously requested to move his trial from Latah County to Ada County citing a “mob mentality” that threatened their client’s safety. The new motion on Kohberger’s court attire has been submitted to Ada County Judge Steven Hippler for consideration.
Kohberger’s attorneys argue his right to a fair trial would be protected if he is allowed to wear civilian clothing to proceedings.
“Authorizing Mr Kohberger to wear street clothing to all public hearings is one way to reduce potential for prejudice,” his attorney Anne Taylor wrote in court filings obtained by Fox News.
Taylor cited a Supreme Court decision from 1976 stating that forcing a defendant to wear a jail uniform to court could negatively impact whether a jury saw them as guilty of alleged crimes.
Additionally, his legal team has successfully argued against having media inside the courtroom, which has restricted the ability of news outlets to photograph Kohberger.
Police say Kohberger entered an off-campus rental home around 4am on 13 November 2022 and stabbed four students to death: Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20 and Ethan Chapin, 20.
Upon searching the home, police found a Ka-Bar knife sheath under Mogen’s body that they say had the man’s DNA on it. Data from Kohberger’s phone also put him in the same neighborhood at the time of the murders.
Steve Goncalves, Goncalves’ father, has raised his frustrations over the defendant’s ability to wear suits in court, calling the move one of the “unprecedented” pretrial privileges that have been given to the accused murderer.
Kohberger’s trial has been set for 2 June 2025.
