Defense for Idaho quadruple murder suspect Bryan Kohberger may cite autism to try to strike death penalty option
Attorneys for the man accused of stabbing four University of Idaho students to death in 2022 have nodded to autism spectrum disorder in asking the court to ensure the 30-year-old wouldn't get the death penalty if convicted, court records show.
Bryan Kohberger is accused of killing Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin at an off-campus home. His trial is expected to begin in August.
Summaries of court documents in the case show the defense filed a motion Monday 'to Strike Death Penalty RE: Autism Spectrum Disorder.' A 'Motion to Redact or Seal Newly Filed Records' was also filed Monday 'in Support of their Motion to Strike Death Penalty RE: Autism Spectrum Disorder Under Seal.'
As of early Wednesday morning, the full documents were not publicly available online. And it was not immediately clear whether Kohberger has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder or if the defense was seeking a diagnosis.
Autism spectrum disorder is a developmental disability caused by differences in the brain, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says, adding scientists believe multiple causes of the disorder act together to change the most common ways people develop.
This is not the first time Kohberger's defense has tried to remove the possibility of the death penalty. Last year, his lawyers filed motions listing a variety of reasons they believe the state's intent to seek the death penalty is unconstitutional.
One motion focuses on what Kohberger's defense team calls an 'ideological shift' and 'evolving standards' in the way Americans view the death penalty.
'The lack of an active death penalty in the majority of states within the United States indicates that there has been an ideological shift and that the punishment now violates our contemporary standards of decency,' they wrote, noting five US states have abolished the practice in recent years.
Other motions argue Idaho's death penalty statute constitutes a violation of international law and the fundamental precepts of international human rights. They also argue Idaho's methods of execution – lethal injection and firing squad – are cruel and unusual punishment and therefore violate the US Constitution.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, last week cited a state law providing 'mental condition shall not be a defense to any charge of criminal conduct' except 'expert evidence on the issues of any state of mind which is an element of the offense,' a court filing shows.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
CNN's Veronica Miracle, Kevin Flower, Cheri Mossburg and Elizabeth Hartfield contributed to this report.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Fox News
44 minutes ago
- Fox News
CNN, MSNBC insist anti-ICE demonstrations have been ‘mostly peaceful' despite widespread unrest
CNN and MSNBC have bent over backwards to remind viewers that anti-ICE demonstrations and riots causing turmoil and unrest across the country were "mostly peaceful," according to a new study from the Media Research Center. Los Angeles, the epicenter of the anti-ICE chaos, has been hit with continued disorder and flash mob-style looting incidents as law enforcement has been forced to make mass arrests. Videos and photos of the disorder have taken the internet by storm and some businesses have even boarded up their shops. Anti-ICE protesters have also clashed with police in New York City, where several police vehicles were set on fire inside an NYPD parking lot overnight Wednesday. In Chicago, a car drove through a crowd of demonstrators Tuesday night as hundreds of anti-ICE protesters gathered, and multiple police vehicles have been vandalized in that city, too. While major cities such as L.A., New York and Chicago have received the most attention, there have also been anti-ICE demonstrations in Washington, North Carolina, Missouri, Texas, Indiana, Colorado, Georgia, and a variety of other areas. Through it all, CNN and MSNBC have continued to insist the demonstrations and riots were "mostly peaceful." The Media Research Center (MRC) analyzed all coverage from June 7-11 and found a staggering 211 examples of CNN and MSNBC personalities insisting the chaos was "largely peaceful," "mostly peaceful" or something similar. CNN was responsible for 123 claims that the riots were "peaceful," while MSNBC reminded viewers 88 times, according to the MRC. NewsBusters senior research analyst Bill D'Agostino, who conducted the MRC study, noticed that whenever there was violence, CNN and MSNBC attributed it to a nebulous, separate group that had no connection with the "peaceful protesters." D'Agostino told Fox News Digital he "counted any assertion that specifically [said] these riots or protests were 'peaceful,' 'largely peaceful,' 'mostly peaceful,' or any other permutation thereof," during segments in which the violence had been acknowledged or shown on screen. "No reporter acknowledged any link between the peaceful and violent elements of the crowds. The rioters were exclusively framed as 'rogue actors,' or 'lone wolves,' and there was never any assertion that they might share common cause with the more peaceful individuals," D'Agostino told Fox News Digital. "Conversely, there was also no instance in which a reporter acknowledged that the National Guard and Marines had been mobilized exclusively to address the violent elements of the crowd," D'Agostino continued. "There were numerous complaints about the use of military force against 'peaceful protesters.'" D'Agostino also only found one instance in which a journalist from CNN or MSNBC referred to the chaos unfolding in Los Angeles as a "riot," which CNN's Jake Tapper did on June 7.
Yahoo
3 hours ago
- Yahoo
Special investigation apparently requested over evidence leaks in Kohberger case
The defense for Bryan Kohberger, the man charged with killing four University of Idaho students, appears to have requested a 'special investigation' into alleged leaks in the case in an episode of NBC's 'Dateline' last month. The prosecution in the case filed a response Wednesday to the defense's motion regarding the appointment of a special prosecutor, according to a public case summary. Judge Steven Hippler, who presides over the case, ordered that filing sealed Thursday, the record showed. The case summary also indicated the defense filed a motion for 'Access and Fair Investigation' and an 'Objection to Release of Privileged and Confidential Work Product' on Wednesday, which Hippler also sealed Thursday. Sealed records are not released publicly, though the judge's sealing orders eventually will post to the state courts website, Idaho courts spokesperson Nate Poppino told the Idaho Statesman on Thursday. At a public hearing last month, Hippler stated he held a closed-door portion earlier that same morning, and the Ada County judge said he was open to bringing on a special prosecutor. That person would be tasked with investigating potential violations of the court's gag order by law enforcement or the prosecution through disclosure of previously unreleased information about Kohberger and the investigation revealed in the episode of 'Dateline.' 'As I indicated, I would be open to a request for appointment of a special prosecutor,' Hippler told the defense at that hearing, 'and that special prosecutor to ask for a magistrate inquiry so they have the power of subpoena and the power to question witnesses under oath, as well as the power to grant immunity. So I will be looking for that from you.' 'Dateline' representatives have not responded to prior requests for comment from the Statesman. The gag order, which took effect four days after Kohberger's arrest in late December 2022, restricts attorneys from both sides — and anyone affiliated with them, including members of law enforcement — from making public statements about the case outside of court. The episode of 'Dateline' aired May 9 — just days before a pretrial hearing in the case. Edwina Elcox, a Boise-based criminal defense attorney, told the Statesman that the filing appears to be about the appointment of a special prosecutor. 'That's exactly what I think that is,' Elcox said in a phone interview Thursday. 'Because obviously Judge Hippler invited it, and that's the way the formal request would be made. They do everything through motion practice, so the way you get that done is ask for a formal inquiry and the court would appoint a special prosecutor.' Hippler earlier issued orders to the prosecution and defense to retain all records and correspondence related to the likely violations within seven days. Each side filed a related 'notice of compliance' to the court on May 22, with the prosecution also submitting a supplemental filing on the matter the next day. Kohberger, 30, faces four counts of first-degree murder in the stabbing deaths of four students at an off-campus home in Moscow. Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty if a jury finds Kohberger guilty. The victims were U of I seniors Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, both 21; junior Xana Kernodle, 20, and freshman Ethan Chapin, 20. The three woman lived in the Moscow home with two female roommates who went physically unharmed in the attack, while Chapin was Kernodle's boyfriend and stayed over for the night. Kohberger's capital murder trial in Boise is scheduled to start with jury selection at the end of July. Defense attorneys last month sought to delay Kohberger's trial, citing an overwhelming amount of evidence they've yet to review, as well as the prejudicial information released about their client on the NBC news program. Prosecutors objected to that request to postpone, and a public court hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, June 18, to argue the issue before Hippler.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Padilla denies claims he lunged at Noem during LA press conference
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) denied the Trump administration's claims that he lunged at Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem during a Thursday presser in Los Angeles. 'I wasn't lunging at her or anybody, and yes, I identified myself,' Padilla told CNN's Erin Burnett Thursday night after being forcibly removed from the presser and placed in handcuffs. The lawmaker said he attended the press briefing to ask why the National Guard was deployed by the president to address local protests sparked by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids last week. 'I'm just trying to do my job as a senator when we ask questions in committee and don't get answers,' he added. Padilla said he used the press conference to try a different approach with the Trump administration to gain information on immigration operations after officials failed to respond to letters from lawmakers. 'I had a potential audience with the secretary, and I took it. Sadly, still not forthcoming with any sort of data or details,' the senator said, before describing his brief meeting with Noem following the incident. 'You would think, you would hope that that's how the meeting would have started, but no apology, no acknowledgment whatsoever. But it's the Trump administration, so I'm not holding my breath for decency, decorum or manners,' he told CNN. 'One of the big points I was trying to make with her is I get if the Trump administration was doing what Trump said on the campaign trail, let's focus on dangerous, violent criminals for detention and deportation. There's no disagreement there. There's no debate there. But that's not what's happening on the streets of Los Angeles and throughout the country,' he added. Padilla said instead lawful residents are being wrongfully removed and detained. 'Where is this going? It's going to keep getting worse. This is how authoritarianism happens, unless and until the people speak up and push back. So that's why you've seen so many protesters, vast majority peaceful protesters, not just in and around Los Angeles this last week, but increasingly in other cities,' he told CNN. 'So, we have to continue to exercise our First Amendment rights, keep it peaceful. Violence is not tolerated. Violence is not condoned. That will have its consequences. But people need to continue to speak up because this is not normal,' he added. Some Republican lawmakers have called for Padilla to be federally prosecuted over the outburst with Noem while Democrats defended his actions. The incident with Padilla follows the federal indictment of Rep. LaMonica McIver (D-N.J.) for allegedly impeding and interfering with law enforcement officers at an immigration detention center and the arrest of Newark Mayor Ras Baraka (D-N.J.) for trespassing at the same site. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
