Prosecutors in Idaho announced on Monday that they plan to seek the death penalty for Bryan Kohberger, who is accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students last November.
"The state gives this notice based on the fact that it has not been identified or been provided with any mitigating circumstances sufficient to prohibit the tiers of fact from considering all penalties authorized by the Idaho legislature including the possibility of a capital sentence," Latah County prosecutor Bill Thompson wrote in a court filing. "Consequently, considering all evidence currently known to the State, the State is compelled to file this notice of intent to seek the death penalty."
The filing on Monday comes shortly after prosecutors said that Kohberger's DNA taken from a buccal swab while in jail was a "statistical match" to DNA that was found on a knife sheath at the crime scene.
On November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Ethan Chapin, 20 and Xana Kernodle, 20, were found fatally stabbed in an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho. Over a month later, Kohberger, 28, was arrested at his parents' residence in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, and charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. A former lawyer who represented Kohberger said at the time that his client was "eager to be exonerated."
The court filing on Monday also states several reasons why prosecutors are seeking the death penalty including a point that says "the defendant, by his conduct, whether such conduct was before, during or after the commission of the murder at hand, has exhibited a propensity to commit murder which will probably constitute a continuing threat to society."
According to the court document, Thompson also wrote that the murder showed Kohberger "exhibited utter disregard for human life," and he acted with "reckless indifference to human life."
Last month, Kohberger appeared in court for his arraignment. His public defender, Anne Taylor, said that her client was "standing silent" on the charges, resulting in the judge entering a not guilty plea for each on Kohberger's behalf.
Shortly after prosecutors filed the court document stating that Kohberger's DNA was a match to the sample found on the knife sheath, the 28-year-old's legal team filed a responding motion, disputing much of the evidence.
"It remains unclear what the police first relied on in focusing their investigation on Mr. Kohberger," Jay Weston Logsdon, a public defender in Kootenai County and member of Kohberger's defense team, wrote in a filing this weekend. "No matter what came first, the car or the genetic genealogy, the investigation has provided precious little. There is no connection between Mr. Kohberger and the victims. There is no explanation for the total lack of DNA evidence from the victims in Mr. Kohberger's apartment, office, home, or vehicle."
Newsweek reached out to Taylor via email for comment.
Update 6/26/2023, 5:55 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
