MOSCOW, Idaho — University of Idaho student homicides suspect Bryan Kohberger stayed silent when asked to enter a plea in Latah County court Monday morning, with the judge defaulting to not guilty. Kohberger’s murder trial was scheduled to begin this fall at the request of his defense.
The hearing was the first public appearance in more than four months for the 28-year-old man accused of murdering four students at an off-campus home in mid-November. Family members for two of the victims and a throng of media filled the courtroom for Kohberger’s arraignment, which lasted about 15 minutes.
Dressed in a bright orange jail outfit with “PRISONER” in black on his back, Kohberger sat with his ankles shackled before Judge John Judge of Idaho’s 2nd Judicial District Court. The judge explained the five charges, which include four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary, to the defendant and the maximum penalties if he’s found guilty.
Kohberger responded affirmatively to Judge’s questions about whether he understood each of the charges against him, but then declined to enter a plea when asked, or what is known as standing silent. Judge entered the not guilty plea on Kohberger's behalf.
At the request of Kohberger’s attorney and with concurrence from the prosecution, Judge set a trial date of Oct. 2. The trial was scheduled to last up to six weeks.
Kohberger was represented Monday by his lead public defender Anne Taylor, who appeared beside him, and her office’s chief deputy of litigation, Jay Logsdon. Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson was joined by Ashley Jennings, his senior deputy prosecutor.
The first-degree murder charges qualify Kohberger for Idaho’s death penalty if he is convicted. Idaho law requires an aggravating circumstance for a death sentence, including the murder of more than one person.
Prosecutors have yet to say whether they will seek the death penalty. They must inform the court of their decision within 60 days now that a plea has been entered.
Kohberger was indicted by a grand jury last week on the five charges. A grand jury is a panel of citizens who hear evidence and determine whether criminal charges should be brought.
The indictment canceled Kohberger’s preliminary hearing previously set to start June 26. That hearing was scheduled to last up to a week and likely would have revealed information to the public not yet released in the case.
At the request of Thompson, Judge ordered the names of all witnesses who testified before the grand jury sealed.
Kohberger was a graduate student of criminal justice and criminology for one semester at neighboring Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, before being arrested over the winter break at his parents’ Pennsylvania home in December.
The victims in the November attack were University of Idaho seniors Madison Mogen, 21, of Coeur d’Alene, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, of Rathdrum; junior Xana Kernodle, 20, of Post Falls; and freshman Ethan Chapin, 20, of Mount Vernon, Washington.
Additional hearings held Monday in the Kohberger case related to opposition to the ongoing gag order, and the defense’s motion to compel discovery after Kohberger’s arraignment. The victims’ family members who attended the arraignment were not present during those proceedings.
At a status conference on the gag order, Shanon Gray, the attorney representing the Goncalves family, requested and received a separate hearing from a media coalition. He said his issues with the gag order are different from the media’s and more narrow in scope.
Judge scheduled two separate hearings on the gag order for June 9. The hearing for the Goncalves family is set for 10:30 a.m. Pacific and the hearing for the media is set for 1:30 p.m. A hearing on the defense’s motion to compel discovery evidence was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Pacific on June 27.
Judge also asked Gray and the media to prepare briefs for the June 9 hearings addressing whether cameras should be allowed in the courtroom going forward.
Pertaining to the request by the group of media outlets opposing the gag order in the case, Judge said the coalition of news organizations needed to “tone down” its challenge. He said the media has focused solely on First Amendment rights with little consideration for the Sixth Amendment, which protects Kohberger’s right to an impartial jury.
“There’s a lot of potential irreparable harm from the media that is impacting a fair trial,” Judge said. “That is concerning. This is a very high-profile case.”
The Idaho Statesman is part of the media coalition challenging the gag order.
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