1 Year Later, No Trial Date Set For Bryan Kohberger In Idaho Killings

BOISE, ID — One year after four University of Idaho students were found stabbed to death in their off-campus home, their families are still awaiting closure as the trial date for the man charged with their murders remains in limbo.

Bryan Kohberger, 28, faces first-degree murder charges in the Nov. 13 deaths of students Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves, who were found fatally stabbed in their Moscow, Idaho, home.

Autopsies showed the students were likely asleep when they were attacked, according to authorities. Some had defensive wounds, and each was stabbed multiple times.

Authorities arrested Kohberger at his parents' Pennsylvania home in December 2022, nearly seven weeks after the killings. A grand jury indicted Kohberger in May, and he stood silent in court before a judge entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf.

Kohberger's trial was initially scheduled to start in October; however, it was postponed indefinitely after Kohberger waived his right for it to begin within six months of his plea, according to a Tribune News Service report.

Currently, the timeline of Kohberger's trial remains uncertain.

Kohberger last appeared in court in October, according to Tribune News Service. A judge set a Dec. 1 deadline for the FBI to turn over DNA records related to the killings to prosecutors. From there, the judge will decide which documents will be turned over to defense attorneys.

Kohberger's indictment is also under scrutiny, the report said. Defense attorneys have moved to dismiss the indictment based on an error in instruction to grand jurors. While a judge has dismissed the defense's efforts on that claim, Tribune News Service reported that he has yet to issue rulings on four other procedural grounds.

In June, prosecutors announced they planned to seek the death penalty for Kohberger. In a filing, prosecutors provided a list of aggravating circumstances, writing that multiple murders were committed and Kohberger showed "utter disregard for human life."

The filing also noted the state had not been given any mitigating circumstances that would prohibit Kohberger from receiving a capital sentence.

While a motive for the killings remains unclear, descriptions of events on the night of the murders from the victims' surviving roommates were revealed in a probable cause affidavit.

In their search of Kohberger's apartment in Washington state, investigators seized stained bedding, strands of what looked like hair, and a single glove, but no weapon, according to documents released in January.

According to a search warrant that allowed law enforcement officers to search Kohberger's parents' Pennsylvania home, officials swabbed Kohberger's DNA and seized a silver flashlight, four "medical-style gloves," a white Arizona Jean Co. T-shirt, a black Champion sweatshirt, a pair of black-and-white size 13 Nike shoes, black Under Armour socks, black Under Armour shorts and black Under Armour boxers.

In August, defense attorneys submitted Kohberger's alibi to the state, claiming that on the night of the murders, he went for a drive alone.

"Mr. Kohberger has a long habit of going for drives alone," according to the filing obtained by CNN. "Often he would go for drives at night. He did so late on Nov. 12 and into Nov. 13, 2022. Mr. Kohberger is not claiming to be at a specific location at a specific time."

In recent months, a judge also maintained a gag order issued by a lower judge prohibiting attorneys for the prosecution, defense, witnesses and the victims' families from speaking about the case outside of court filings.