Prosecutor objects to Kohberger’s request to move trial out of Moscow

By Anthony Kuipers moscow-Pullman Daily News

Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson said Bryan Kohberger’s request to change the venue of his upcoming trial is premature and without sufficient basis, according to a motion filed Thursday in Latah County District Court.

The motion is in response to public defender Anne Taylor’s motion to move the trial outside of Latah County, which she filed Jan. 31.

Taylor argued that the “inflammatory pretrial publicity,” the small size of the community and the severity of Kohberger’s charges would make it impossible to find a fair and impartial pool of jurors for the trial.

Kohberger faces four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in the November 2022 stabbing deaths of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. He faces the death penalty if convicted.

Thompson, in his motion, argued that it is too early to decide on a venue. He asked that the court first set a trial date and a hearing date to discuss Kohberger’s motion to change the venue.

Thompson said Kohberger “has not provided the court with adequate information to conclude that a Latah County jury could not fairly and impartially decide (the) defendant’s case.”

He wrote that there needs to be affidavits showing there is prejudice in the community, and testimonies showing jurors have formed an opinion on the defendant based on adverse pretrial publicity.

“Other factors for consideration are whether a defendant challenged for cause any individual jurors, the nature of pretrial publicity about the case, and the duration of time between the publicity and the trial itself,” Thompson wrote.

Thompson said the Idaho Supreme Court explained that publicity alone does not require a change of venue.

During Kohberger’s Jan. 26 hearing, Thompson argued in front of Latah County District Judge John Judge that changing the trial venue is not necessary because of the widespread attention this case has received outside of Moscow. He said it will be difficult to find a county where people are unfamiliar with Kohberger.

During that hearing, Thompson and Taylor also argued about when to hold the trial. Taylor prefers to push it to summer of 2025 so she has more time to prepare for the case. Thompson said his team is ready to hold the trial this summer.