The man charged with stabbing four University of Idaho students to death in Moscow, Idaho, had his trial moved to Boise, Idaho, and a new judge assigned to the case. The order came from the Idaho Supreme Court on Thursday, Sept. 12, as the justices agreed with a lower court’s finding that he would not receive a fair trial in north Idaho’s Latah County.
The defense argued that Bryan Kohberger, the murder suspect, would not get an impartial jury because the pressure to find him guilty in the rural area near the crime would be too great.
Kohberger’s lawyers noted that one of the respondent’s threatened to “burn the courthouse down” if Kohberger was not convicted of the murders.
Boise is about 300 miles south of Moscow. However, the prosecution contended the case is nationally known already and a change of venue for the trial would not make a difference in fairness.
The relatives of one of the victims, Kaylee Goncalves did not want the location changed, saying that they believed having the trial in Latah County would help the community heal.
“We’ve always tried to do what we thought was best,” Steve Goncalves, the father of Kaylee, told ABC News. “Keeping it where it had been, but if that can’t happen, let’s just hit the ground running and just get it going.”
Kohberger is accused of killing the students at an off-campus house in November 2022. He’s charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary. If convicted of the crimes he could face the death penalty. The trial is set to begin in June 2025.
Kohberger has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and his defense claims he is innocent.
