BOISE, Idaho (CBS2) — Bryan Kohberger's motion to have the grand jury indictment thrown out and for permission to appeal to a higher court have both been denied.
Bryan Kohberger is charged with four counts of first-degree murder that occurred in an off-campus home near the University of Idaho in November 2022. Kohberger was charged with murdering four students at the University of Idaho on Dec. 30, 2022, and has been in custody since then.
Kohberger's defense team filed a motion to dismiss the indictment against him because the Grand Jury received erroneous instructions and that the Grand Jury was biased, there was inadmissible evidence, a lack of sufficient evidence, and prosecutorial misconduct. Both motions were denied on Dec. 15, 2023.
A motion asking the court to reconsider was filed in response by the defense team, and a hearing in court occurred on Jan. 26, 2024. Judge John Judge reviewed both motions and denied them both in court. A written explanation of his ruling has been added to the court record.
The primary thrust of the defense teams' argument is based on the standard by which Grand Juries determine whether or not to indict. A Grand Jury's primary function is to act as an investigative body to determine whether or not they believe the prosecution has gathered enough evidence to bring the defendant to trial. Their job is not to determine guilt or innocence.
According to Judge Judge, the defense team's argument has been tried by other defense teams around Idaho, also to no avail. The defense argues the standard for indictment should be "beyond a reasonable doubt" and not "probable cause," which is the well-settled standard for a grand jury indictment in Idaho.
Judge Judge says in response, "The Defendant himself recognizes that 'the whole of modern jurisprudence on the issue is against' his novel theory that beyond a reasonable doubt is the applicable standard."
The Judge completed his written orders by saying that while the case itself is "exceptional in that Defendant is charged with four counts of first-degree murder and is facing the death penalty if convicted, the issues raised by Defendant's motions to dismiss the indictment are not exceptional, nor are they 'substantial legal issues of great public interest' or 'legal questions of first impression.'"
A trial date has not been set. A motion for a change of venue has been filed and will be heard in court soon. The change of venue, if granted, will likely play a factor in the scheduling of the trial.
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