Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Prosecutors filed notice of intent on June 26
MOSCOW — Prosecution in the Idaho Murders trial announced they are seeking capital punishment, the death penalty, against Bryan Kohberger, 28, who was accused of stabbing four University of Idaho students last November.
The bodies of Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin were found on November 13, 2022.
Kohberger is charged with four counts of murder in connection with the deaths at a house near the University of Idaho campus last November.
Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson filed the notice of his intent to seek the death penalty in court Monday, June 26.
A not-guilty plea was entered in the case on Kohberger’s behalf in May as court hearings are set to proceed.
Kohberger was a criminology graduate student at Washington State University. He was arrested at his parent’s home in eastern Pennsylvania on December 30, 2022.
Court documents detailed how police pieced together DNA evidence, cellphone data, and surveillance video allegedly linking Kohberger to the killings.
Idaho, unlike Washington State, still allows capital punishment.
Executions by lethal injection are still performed; however, prison officials reportedly have been unable to obtain the necessary chemicals, causing executions to be postponed.
On July 1, death by firing squad will be the approved backup method of execution under a law passed by the Legislature earlier this year; this will likely be challenged in federal court.
Olivia Harnack is a Journalist at the Whitman County Gazette. Olivia is enrolled at University of Idaho and is majoring in digital film studies. She serves in the United States Army National Guard and is proud to serve Whitman County.
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