Lawyers for Bryan Kohbergerthe man accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students in 2022, he plans to use cell tower data to show he was not at the location where the murders took place, according to a new court filing.
Kohberger is accused of murdering Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin in mid-November 2022 in a home in Moscow, Idaho, where the university is located. The house has since been demolished.
Court documents providing an alibi for Kohberger said he “was driving early on the morning of November 13, 2022; as he often did to hike and run and/or see the moon and stars. He drove throughout the area south of Pullman, Washington, west of Moscow, Idaho, including Wawawai Park.
The document says a cell site location information expert will testify that cell tower data shows “Kohberger’s mobile device was south of Pullman, Washington and west of Moscow, Idaho November 13, 2022; that Bryan Kohberger’s mobile device did not travel east on the road to Moscow. -Pullman Highway in the early morning hours of November 13, so it cannot be the vehicle filmed along the Moscow-Pullman Highway near the Floyd Cannabis Store.
A previous affidavit said investigators found cell tower data from that morning showing Kohberger’s phone in Pullman around 2:47 a.m. on the night of the murders, at which point it suddenly stopped connecting to the cellular network, according to “48 hours“That’s about the time surveillance video showed her car leaving her apartment, “48 Hours” reported.
Two hours after his phone disappeared from the network, he reappeared south of Moscow and headed back toward Pullman, “48 Hours” reported.
At the time of his arrest, approximately six weeks after the murders, Kohberger held a Ph.D. student in criminology and teaching assistant at Washington State University’s Pullman campus, about a 15-minute drive from Moscow. Kohberger was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania.
The defense’s alibi notice on Wednesday also said that more information about Kohberger’s location the night of the murders “will be provided once the State provides the requested evidence and now subject to a future motion to compel If not disclosed, the (expert’s) testimony will also reveal that crucial exculpatory evidence, further corroborating Mr. Kohberger’s alibi, was not preserved or was withheld. .”
Kohberger’s lawyer also requested a change of venue, The Associated Press reportedarguing that he would not receive a fair trial in the area where the killings took place.
“A fair and impartial jury cannot be found in Latah County because of the extensive and inflammatory pre-trial publicity, allegations made to the public about Mr. Kohberger by the media which will be inadmissible at his trial, the small size of the community, the salacious nature of the alleged crimes and the seriousness of the charges against Mr. Kohberger,” wrote attorney Anne Taylor, according to AP.
The Latah County prosecutor opposed the change of venue request, the AP reported.
A hearing on the change of venue motion will be held on May 14, 2024, according to court documents.
Kohberger is charged with four counts of murder in the stabbing deaths of the students. Kohberger did not respond when asked how he entered his plea at his arraignment, so a judge entered a not guilty plea for him. Prosecutors said they would seek the death penalty if Kohberger was convicted.
— Kerry Breen contributed reporting.
Grub5
