The prosecution in the Bryan Kohberger case, the man accused of killing four University of Idaho students more than a year ago, objected to a motion for a change of venue filed by the defense in late January.
According to court documents, the state cites that the filing was premature and without sufficient basis. The defense’s basis was that an impartial jury could not be found in Latah County and that the mass publicity of the case also compromised Kohberger’s right to a fair trial.
The state said that not enough sufficient information has been presented to conclude that a fair trial could not be found in Latah County. The state cited the Idaho Supreme Court in State vs Needs, 1979 “Publicity by itself does not require a change of venue.”
The state argued that because publicity is not a stand-alone reason for a court to change venue, that the court should deny the motion to change venue until a trial date is set and the court has heard adequate information for a decision to be made.
The state requests that a trial date be set, a briefing schedule for the defendant’s motion, a hearing date for the motion to be heard, and supporting evidence so that parties can have time to prepare.
A public hearing has been set for Feb. 28 to address scheduling on the defendant’s motion to change venue, a discovery cut-off deadline, deadlines for filing pretrial motions, and dates for a trial.
Ben DeWitt can be reached at [email protected] or on X @BenDeWitt321
Cynthia J Hollenbeck
Bill Thompson is a hero for our community.