Bryan Kohberger’s defense team has filed final arguments to exclude key evidence ahead of his trial, challenging the legitimacy of multiple search warrants used by law enforcement in the investigation of the 2022 Idaho murders.
Kohberger, accused of the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students, faces charges of first-degree murder and felony burglary. His attorneys have raised concerns about police misconduct, overreach in warrants, and violations of his constitutional rights, specifically regarding the use of investigative genetic genealogy IGG.
IGG, a technique that uses genetic data from ancestry websites to build family trees and identify suspects, led investigators to Kohberger. His defense argues that without this method, the case against him would not have materialized.
They also claim the FBI’s use of IGG to link Kohberger to the crime scene DNA, found on a knife sheath, led to several search warrants and surveillance actions that violated Kohberger’s rights, including the raid at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania.
Kohberger’s defense also challenges the legality of the no-knock raid that led to his arrest in December 2022, arguing it was unnecessary and violated proper procedure. Additionally, the defense has filed for a Franks hearing, seeking to suppress evidence obtained through warrants that they allege were based on false information.
The prosecution has opposed these motions, maintaining that law enforcement adhered to legal procedures and that judges had sufficient probable cause to approve the warrants.
The court hearing on these motions is scheduled for January 23, 2024, before Judge Steven Hippler. If the defense succeeds, key evidence, including Kohberger’s cellphone and online account records, could be excluded from his trial, potentially weakening the prosecution’s case. Kohberger’s trial is set to begin in August 2025, with jury selection scheduled for July.