The judge overseeing Bryan Kohberger’s murder trial in Idaho on Wednesday denied several defense motions aimed at hamstringing the prosecution’s case, including a critical motion that would have seen the judge toss “investigative genetic genealogy” evidence from the case.
Hearings on all four motions denied by Judge Steven Hippler were held on January 23 and 24. In addition to the IGG information, the defense sought to suppress electronic search information and arrest and search warrants and to prompt a “Franks hearing” to determine the validity of the search warrants.
Kohberger is charged with four counts of murder and one count of burglary in the November 2022 stabbing deaths of University of Idaho students Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, and Kaylee Goncalves at the women’s off-campus housing, as CrimeOnline reported. Kohberger was a graduate student at Washington State University, about 10 miles away from the Idaho campus, at the time.
He was arrested more than a month later at his parents’ Pennsylvania home after investigators used IGG to match DNA found on a knife sheath left at the residence with family members.
Hippler declined to exclude the DNA evidence because a defendant has no expectation of privacy for “DNA left at a crime scene.”
Hippler provided lengthy and detailed explanations of his rulings. The Franks hearing and electronic information denials were 38 pages each, the IGG ruling was 29 pages, and the warrant ruling was 11 pages.
Kohberger’s trial was moved from Latah County to the larger Ada County last fall and is now set to begin in August.
