Idaho murders case: Bryan Kohberger judge ends 'pervasive' secret filings restricting what public can see
Ada County Judge Steven Hippler told both sides in the Idaho student murders case that they will no longer have the court's permission to file a large number of documents under seal and out of view of the public.
"The parties' pervasive practice of filing material under seal in this case has become the norm rather than the exception," Hippler wrote in an order filed Monday. "Rather than seeking to redact discrete sensitive information, entire documents are filed under seal. In addition, much of the material the parties seek to seal is already in the public domain or is simply not confidential or sensitive."
Bryan Kohberger's defense team and state prosecutors can still ask to have certain information, such as the names of witnesses and the victim's family members, redacted, Hippler said. He will also allow documents to be filed under seal if sealing is justified under Idaho Court Administrative Rule 32, which governs documents that are exempt from public disclosure.
Idaho Prosecutors Want To Block Bryan Kohberger From Arguing An 'Alternative Perpetrator' Left Blood At Scene
"The parties must also seek the least restrictive method to protect information that should be or is exempt from disclosure," Hippler wrote.
"For example, despite the Court's concerns being expressed previously, the State continues to seek broad orders sealing entire documents to protect the identity of individuals rather than simply using initials or requesting that a redacted version be made public that discloses only initials."
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Idaho Judge Denies Bryan Kohberger Defense Motion To Suppress Key Evidence
Read the judge's order
The court will also continue to redact filings that include grand jury testimony, because grand jury proceedings take place in secret by default.
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"I've never seen so many documents sealed in a criminal case with no real legal basis," said Neama Rahmani, a former federal prosecutor and Los Angeles-based trial attorney. "There is a strong presumption that court filings are public."
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The case has garnered massive public interest across the U.S. and abroad, he said, and as a result, the public interest can be violated by conducting so much of the proceedings behind closed doors.
"It's not proper for the judge to issue a blanket order gagging the victims' families and to allow the parties carte blanche to file everything under seal," he said.
Witness To Idaho Murders Says Intruder With Bushy Eyebrows Carried Vacuum Out Of Crime Scene: Court Docs
Just days after Kohberger's arrest in connection with the murders of Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, Latah County Magistrate Judge Megan Marshall issued the first gag order.
Both sides have used that gag order to justify answering virtually no questions about the case outside the courtroom. As a result, nearly all of the publicly known information in the case was either contained in a police affidavit unsealed in January 2023 or through courtroom statements.
"There is so little evidence that has come out since the search warrants," Rahmani told Fox News Digital.
Kohberger was studying for a Ph.D. in criminology at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, at the time of the murders. His apartment was about a 20-minute drive from the crime scene, at the neighboring University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho, where all four victims were undergrads. Each had been stabbed multiple times in a 4 a.m. home invasion.
Under the 21-year-old Mogen's body, police found a knife sheath that prosecutors allege contained Kohberger's DNA. Other known evidence includes phone data and video showing the suspect vehicle – as well as testimony from a surviving housemate who saw a man with bushy eyebrows leave the crime scene wearing a mask, possibly carrying a vacuum cleaner.
After Kohberger's indictment, the case went to District Judge John Judge, who entered not guilty pleas on the defendant's behalf at his arraignment in 2023, and he kept the gag order in place.
It went to Judge Hippler after the defense argued for and received a change of venue.
Kohberger's third judge made several moves favoring transparency in recent days, unsealing the transcript of a closed-door hearing on DNA evidence that took place in January and ordering the court to make audio recordings available for other sealed hearings that took place earlier.
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Kohberger's trial is expected to begin in August and could take up to 15 weeks. He could face the death penalty if convicted.Original article source: Idaho murders case: Bryan Kohberger judge ends 'pervasive' secret filings restricting what public can see
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CBS News
17 minutes ago
- CBS News
Downtown L.A. curfew goes into effect after California Gov. Gavin Newsom addresses ICE protests
California Gov. Gavin Newsom delivered a statewide address on Tuesday in the wake of immigration operations that sparked days of protest in Los Angeles and the deployment of hundreds of National Guard and U.S. Marines troops to the area by President Trump. "Trump, without consulting California leaders, commandeered 2,000 of our state's National Guard members to deploy on our streets illegally and for no reason," Newsom said. "This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president enflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk." The speech came on the heels of Mayor Karen Bass' decision to implement a curfew in downtown Los Angeles after five nights of unrest in the city center, and an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order filed by the state in its lawsuit to block further deployment of troops. That curfew resulted in dozens of arrests on Tuesday, with law enforcement swarming the impacted area as soon as it went into effect. Sporadic arrests followed. It was unclear how many were made in all. Since Friday, when the first operations took place in several downtown locations, protesters have taken to the streets to denounce the arrest of dozens of people. In some instances, protests have escalated into violent clashes that left an aftermath of destruction, including graffiti, looting, vandalism and debris. The next night, Mr. Trump declared that the National Guard would be deployed to Los Angeles to help quell the turmoil, despite opposition from California politicians who said it was largely unnecessary. That order was then followed by the deployment of 2,000 more National Guard troops and 700 U.S. Marines to the area as the protests continued, something Newsom called "fanning the flames even harder." "The President, he did it on purpose. As the news spread throughout L.A., anxiety for family and friends ramped up and protests started again. By night, several dozen lawbreakers became violent and destructive, they vandalized property, they tried to assault police officers," Newsom said. "This situation was winding down and was concentrated in just a few square blocks downtown. But that, that's not what Donald Trump wanted." "What we're witnessing is not law enforcement — it's authoritarianism. What Donald Trump wants most is your fealty, your silence, to be complicit in this moment," Newsom said. "Do not give into him." Los Angeles police and protestors face off in Downtown L.A. on Tuesday, June 10, 2025 in Los Angeles, CA. Jason Armond Curfew issued During an evening press conference, Bass said that since demonstrations have continued to escalate into violence, resulting in dozens of arrests and more than 20 businesses looted, she would impose a curfew. "The curfew will be in place tonight from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m.," she said. "We certainly expect for it to last for several days." It runs for one-square mile in the downtown area from the 5 Freeway to the 110 Freeway and from the 10 Freeway to where the 110 Freeway and 5 Freeway merge. "The city of Los Angeles is a massive area, 502 square miles," Bass said. "The area of downtown, where the curfew will take place, is one square mile ... Some of the imagery of the protest, of the violence gives the appearance as though this is a citywide crisis and it is not." Protesters gather in front of California National Guard soldiers and LAPD officers guarding the Edward R. Roybal Federal building as protests continue in Los Angeles on June 10, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. / Getty Images Demonstrations continue Tuesday Dozens gathered once again Tuesday, but police were quick to close in on the growing crowd near the Metropolitan Detention Center. With the CBS Los Angeles helicopter overhead, multiple people were seen being detained and loaded onto buses by officers. At around 4 p.m. a small crowd moved towards the 101 Freeway, briefly entering southbound lanes before they were met by the California Highway Patrol. Some officers stopped traffic as others formed a skirmish line to prevent the pedestrians from moving further into the road. Despite law enforcement blocking offramps and onramps for the thoroughfare, the crowd was able to gain entry through a hole that had been cut in a chainlink fence. On Sunday, hundreds of demonstrators flooded the same stretch of freeway, where they clashed with CHP officers. At around 7:30 p.m. CBS News Los Angeles reporters said that tensions again escalated outside of the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building, where people in the crowd began hurling projectiles towards a line of National Guard troops stationed out front. When the curfew went active 30 minutes later, dozens of LAPD officers arrived outside of the building, which prompted much of the crowd to begin leaving the area. Still, dozens of people attempted to hang around, resulting in their arrests. It's unclear exactly how many people were taken into custody. With the CBS News helicopter overhead, a group of dozens were seen still moving through the area, some stopping to tag the side of buildings and Metro buses. By 11 p.m. most of the people who had previously gathered downtown appeared to have left the area. A crowd of protesters outside of the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building in downtown Los Angeles on June 10, 2025. KCAL News How it started The protests began Friday night after several immigration raids took place in the Westlake District, downtown and South LA. The CBS News Los Angeles helicopter flew over the locations where crowds quickly formed, and protesters attempted to prevent federal agents from placing individuals into vans. One of the 45 people arrested that day was local union leader David Huerta. The protests that took place over the weekend were declared unlawful assemblies and people were ordered to disperse and clear the area. In each case there were small pockets of the demonstrations that turned chaotic, which included hundreds of people converging on the 101 Freeway to block traffic on Sunday afternoon. That same day, several Waymo vehicles were torched to the ground by one group of people. The day prior, hundreds of demonstrators clashed with law enforcement in Paramount and Compton. Reporters on the ground saw as law enforcement and troops dressed in riot gear attempted to clear crowds by using tear gas, beanbag rounds and flash bangs into crowds to try and disperse people. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem posted on X that people who "lay a hand" on law enforcement officers will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. So far, nearly 400 people have been arrested in the series of demonstrations, Newsom said on Tuesday. Protesters gathered in downtown Los Angeles on June 10, 2025, marking the fifth consecutive day of anti-ICE protests. KCAL News National Guard and military in Los Angeles The Marines began arriving in the LA area on Tuesday morning, a defense official said, joining the thousands of National Guard troops already in the area to respond to the protests. Acting Defense Department comptroller Bryn MacDonnell testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense and said the deployment of the National Guard will cost about $134 million. On Tuesday, California Attorney General Rob Bonta asked a federal judge to provide a temporary restraining order to stop Mr. Trump, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the U.S. Department of Defense from using the military and the National Guard to patrol the region and protect federal officers and facilities. The day before Bonta filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, arguing the orders are unlawful and exceed the federal government's authority under the Tenth Amendment. "President Trump's order calling federalized National Guard troops into Los Angeles — over the objections of the Governor and local law enforcement — is unnecessary and counterproductive. It's also deeply unfair to the members of the National Guard who are hard at work every day protecting our state, preparing for and responding to emergencies, and training so that, if called, they can fight our nation's wars," Bonta said. Bass blamed the unrest in LA on the federal government's involvement, saying that before immigration enforcement actions last week, the city was "peaceful." During a speech at Fort Bragg on Tuesday, Mr. Trump called the protests "a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and a national sovereignty. He said that if it weren't for his calling in the National Guard, L.A. would be "burning to the ground right now" and that the majority of the demonstrations were allegedly "carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags with the aim of continuing a foreign invasion of our country" and that he would "liberate" L.A. Democratic California Sen. Alex Padilla spoke with CBS News' Major Garrett on Tuesday regarding the actions of immigration enforcement and the several days of protests. He said that while the majority of the demonstrations have been peaceful, "the folks that show up after dark and are involved with the looting and the vandalism ... we denounce that." He called the ongoing situation a "crisis of Donald Trump's making." "The increasingly aggressive and cruel tactics of the immigration enforcement is what's prompting the response of people who are passionate about speaking up for our fundamental rights and due process, because the enforcement operations have gone far beyond just the violent criminals or the dangerous criminals that Donald Trump has promised," Padilla said. "It's raking in people who are otherwise innocent, hardworking women and men, children." He also denounced the deployment of military troops to the area. "The National Guard, to your point, it's not only not necessary here, it's counterproductive. Their presence is what's causing people to feel a little bit more on edge," he said. "As things have been quieting down a little bit more each day, now he's capturing that, not with a deescalation, but now potentially sending the Marines. Donald Trump is escalating the situation." Padilla, who grew up in the Pacoima area, served as president of the Los Angeles City Council and represented the San Fernando Valley in the state Senatre, says that the matter is "personal to me." "Los Angeles is my home. I am the proud son of immigrants from Mexico who worked so hard, who sacrificed so much to live their American dream. That's what the immigrant community is fighting for," he said. Protests take place across California Demonstrations have also taken place in cities across California in response to the events in Los Angeles. On Monday, a crowd of over 100 people gathered in Santa Ana outside the complex of federal buildings in the downtown area, some of which threw fireworks towards law enforcement officials who used crowd dispersal methods like smoke-filled canisters and pepper balls in return. The situation was much more peaceful on Tuesday, with a smaller group of people protesting in the same area without incident. "When a peaceful demonstration escalates into rocks, bottles, mortars, and fireworks being used against public service personnel, and property is destroyed, it is no longer a lawful assembly. It is a violation of the law," said a statement from Santa Ana Police Chief Robert Rodriguez. "We will not stand by while our City is put at risk. Santa Ana Police officers, along with our mutual aid partners, are actively working to restore order. We urge everyone to go home." Tensions grew in San Francisco Monday night when police said two small groups of individuals committed vandalism and other criminal acts. Police said multiple people were arrested and detained after refusing to comply.
CBS News
an hour ago
- CBS News
Troubling on-campus incident sparks concerns over LAUSD's move to defund police department
Years after the Los Angeles Unified School District defunded its police department, a troubling event has once again sparked concerns that campuses are not as safe as they should be for students and their families. Parent Elizabeth Funes-Lara says her injustice began in March, when she stopped at a magnet-school bus stop outside of Manual Arts High School to pick up her 11-year-old son. Her other child, a two-year-old boy, was riding in the backseat. As she tried to pull out of the area, Funes-Lara says a black SUV suddenly backed up to try and block her in. The incident was captured on the school's surveillance system and was being recorded on the mother's cell phone. "I know she's going to do something, so I'm recording," she recalled. The video of the incident shows the female driver, an LAUSD Safe Passage Ambassador, walking straight for her window before a brief verbal confrontation that quickly escalated. "She punched me and scratched my face," Funes-Lara said. "I'm just in disbelief that someone who works at school with children is capable of doing that." She says that aside from the injuries, her children and their safety are her primary concerns. "All that screaming, for him it was traumatizing," she said. "I try not to cry, because I don't want to scare him, but I don't think they should be witnessing someone hitting their mother." Gil Gamez with the Los Angeles School Police Association says that his officers used to patrol the school where the incident took place. He says that if one of them did what the district's worker did, they would be in prison. But since the school board defunded the department, cutting the budget by nearly 20% and its officers by 33% in 2022, police have been pushed off many campuses and replaced with private community groups with a program called "Safe Passage." "They moved police officers off-campus, they moved everybody out of the way and they gave these security guard companies full access to the students on and off campus, without any training, without any mentorship, for sure without a police officer next to them," he said. "They don't know how to handle things, and some of these individuals are formerly incarcerated individuals." Gamez pointed to another man who worked with high schoolers, who also has a criminal record. That man once revealed at an LAUSD board meeting that he has served 21 years of a 30 years to life sentence. Court records show that the same woman who attacked Funes-Lara also served jail time for violating her probation following a forgery conviction back in 2018. "I don't see why LAUSD would hire her," Gamez said. "She should not be in a coveted position of a school security personnel around a child's school with a record like that." He says that no police department, including the Los Angeles Police Department, Los Angeles Sheriff's Department, and the Los Angeles School Police Department would hire someone like this, because it's unethical. While there have been numerous incidents involving guns on campus, fights and stabbings this year, LAUSD's data shows that, overall, the violent crime numbers are down compared to the last year. However, the number of rapes and aggravated assaults have spiked. The woman who allegedly assaulted Funes-Lara works for a community organization called Boys 2 Gentlemen. The district now pays Keith Linton, who owns Boys 2 Gentlemen, more than $500,000 a year for his 60 employees that service the nearly 25,000 kids at 20 LAUSD schools, he says. KCAL News has profiled his program before, and that story can be viewed here. He also says that, while his program aims to help provide safe passage to students and their families, what happened to Funes-Lara should never have occurred. "What should happen now is what we did. That employee was terminated, that employee will never have a chance with LAUSD, and what we've done is, we've revved up our training," Linton said. "There should be no employee on any campus that works for me that does what that employee did." Though he says it's never certain what could happen from one day to the next, he's dedicated to his cause of making sure campuses remain safe. "I can't tell you today that out of my north of 60 employees, that tomorrow there's not going to be an incident with a kid, or a verbal exchange with a parent, but I cant tell you, as a leader, I'm out here 20 hours a day and I'm at every school." He's a former LAPD officer who says he does train all of his employees and does run background checks. Even so, he says, nothing came back on the woman involved, who now faces battery charges for the incident. There is also a warrant out for her arrest after she missed her first court date. When asked if parents should still trust his system, Linton said, "Yes," and that people should refer to his website as opposed to the one incident that took place. Funes-Lara is unsure, still looking back to the recording and reliving the traumatizing memories. She has now hired an attorney after saying the district should have protected her and her family. LAUSD would not provide someone to be interviewed for this story and only answered approximately 10% of the written questions KCAL submitted to the district. They did not respond to any questions about the attack on school property or address it directly. A district spokesperson also claims LA school police are now "fully staffed," but the union president says that is flatly false and that the number of police who are actually on patrol is down dramatically compared to previous years. Here is the statement from LAUSD: The Los Angeles Unified Board of Education has committed to implementing a Community Based Safety Pilot (CBSP) program to address concerns in the community about student safety. Safe Passage is one of the pilot initiatives included in the program approved by the Board in 2021. These CBSP efforts – alongside partnerships with law enforcement, governmental and community agencies – reflect the District's commitment to leverage all available resources to support student safety. Currently, 77 of our 1500+ schools take advantage of the Safe Passage program offerings by approximately 30 Safe Passage vendors. Los Angeles Unified continually conducts periodic assessments and monitoring of the Safe Passage pilot initiative to evaluate what is working well and what needs to be strengthened. Some recent actions taken in response to our ongoing assessment include: On December 16, 2024, Los Angeles Unified issued an updated Bulletin for vendors regarding criminal background compliance requirements (BUL-3872.1 Fingerprinting and Criminal Background Compliance for Contractors).* On February 26, 2025, we trained Principals on the new bulletin to ensure coherence. On May 30, updated guidance was disseminated to Regions. On June 2, 2025, additional guidance was disseminated to school administrators. As part of our ongoing review of all of our safety programs, on April 9, 2025, the Superintendent requested that a comprehensive review process of the current Safe Passage program be initiated, including a review of vendor contracts, their implementation, vendors' protocols for hiring, the training required by vendors for their employees, and the data-driven impact of these services on our communities. Our review is ongoing however, we can highlight the following: After a jump in incidents immediately following the pandemic, we are seeing improvement in the data regarding on-campus incidents Districtwide. Incident Report Type* July 01, 2019 - May 31, 2020** July 01, 2022 - May 31, 2023 July 01, 2023 - May 31, 2024 July 01, 2024 - May 31, 2025 Suicide Risk 5,641 9,384 9,218 8,461 Fighting/Physical Aggression 1,941 4,063 5,513 5,403 Threat 1,381 2,893 3,544 3,544 Illegal/Controlled Substance 688 1,541 1,786 1,735 Weapons 513 1,121 1,018 857 We are seeing improvements in our Student Experience Survey data, which is also reflected in a recent GPSN report. And we see improvements in data among those students in the 77 schools receiving Safe Passage services who report "I Feel Safe in the Neighborhood Around This School". Finally, Los Angeles Unified has filled all vacancies with the Los Angeles Unified Police Department and now employs a fully staffed department. *Please note that pursuant to Education Code Section 42125.1, and as required under the District's contracts with these vendors, any employee of contractor who interacts with pupils outside of the immediate supervision of a parent/guardian or school employee, is required to be fingerprinted for purposes of a background check conducted by the California Department of Justice. District contractors are required to provide a certification confirming that such employees have completed such a background check prior to engaging with any District students. *When appropriate, the District has taken action to terminate a vendor contract and, in the case of Manual Arts, a vendor immediately terminated the employment of the individual in question.
CNN
2 hours ago
- CNN
Curfew goes into effect in downtown LA
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