The murder trial of Bryan Kohberger will now take place in Boise, Idaho, after the accused killer of four college students successfully argued that he could not get a fair trial in the small community where the tragedy occurred.
Idaho Supreme Court Chief Justice Richard Bevan issued an order Thursday moving the case from the small town of Moscow to the state capital and assigning District Judge Steven Hippler to oversee the trial — currently set for June 2025.
Kohberger — a former criminology Ph.D. student at Washington State University — will also be transferred from a Latah County jail to the Ada County Sheriff’s Office, the ruling states.
The move comes after Latah County Judge John Judge on Monday granted Kohberger’s motion to move the case on the grounds that potential jurors in Moscow had been exposed to too much media coverage and were too emotionally attached to the November 13, 2022 massacre to decide the case fairly.
Lawyers for Kohberger, 29, claimed a poll of 400 local residents found 60% believed Kohberger was guilty, 52% believed he should receive the death penalty and some said they would kill him themselves if found innocent, and one added and that they would burn down the courthouse if he was acquitted.
Judge Judge said a jury pool in Latah County would have a “presumptive bias” and ordered the case moved out of the county, leaving it up to the Gem State Supreme Court to determine the new venue.
Kohberger is accused of slaughtering University of Idaho students Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen in their off campus house.
He pleaded not guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary.