According to new court documents, Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of murdering four University of Idaho students in November, claims he was on a routine drive at the time of the murders.
The 28-year-old Kohberger is charged with four counts of first-degree homicide and one count of burglary. He is accused of murdering Ethan Chapin, age 20, of Conway, Washington; Madison Mogen, age 21, of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho; Xana Kernodle, age 20, of Avondale, Arizona; and Kaylee Goncalves, age 21, of Rathdrum, Idaho.
Bryan Kohberger's Alibi Revealed
On Wednesday, Kohberger's counsel objected to the state's request for an alibi for the night of the homicide. His attorneys claim in court documents that "Mr. Kohberger has a lengthy history of going on solo excursions" and that he did so the night before and morning of the brutal murders.
Cross-examination of the state's witnesses, according to his counsel, will provide confirmation that Kohberger was not present at the site of the crime. The filing states that Mr. Kohberger cannot be more specific about potential witnesses and what they will say.
At Kohberger's arraignment on May 22, the judge entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf because he did not respond when the judge asked him how he pleaded.
At the time of the murders, Kohberger was a Ph.D. student in criminology and a teaching assistant at the Pullman campus of Washington State University, which is only a 15-minute commute from the residence in Moscow, Idaho, where the four students were murdered.
Per CBS News, authorities believe the victims were unconscious when they were attacked with a large military-style weapon and suffered multiple stab wounds. According to court documents, Kohberger's DNA matches the DNA discovered on a knife sheath at the murder site.
According to a police affidavit, one of the two survivors in the house heard a disturbance and saw a masked man exit through a sliding door in the backyard. According to the Thursday night filing by public defender Anne Taylor, Kohberger has "long had a propensity of driving alone."
Taylor stated that the defense would have been able to develop testimony through cross-examination and witness presentation if the state had chosen to proceed with a preliminary hearing.
David Gelman, a former prosecutor and criminal defense attorney, told Fox News Digital that the defense is "trying to maintain open the possibility of constructing or generating an alibi, even though they don't have one."
Former doctoral student in criminology Kohberger was indicted on May 17 for the deaths of four students. Due to the indictment, Kohberger's defense team was unable to contest the evidence that led to his arrest at the preliminary hearing on June 26.
According to Daily Mail, his trial is scheduled for October, and prosecutors have stated that they will seek the death penalty; they have also recently filed a motion to compel him to disclose an alibi.
Prior to the new motion, his defense filed a motion to dismiss or remand the case for a preliminary hearing. In an effort to contest the jury selection process, his legal team also filed a motion to suspend the proceedings without relinquishing his right to a swift trial.
Idaho Colleger Murders Suspect's Next Trial
During the trial, both teams of attorneys filed motions requesting that exhibits be sealed and not disclosed to the public. In accordance with Idaho law, defendants are required to submit an alibi defense to the court within ten days of receiving a written demand from the prosecutor.
Following the homicides, Kohberger's sedan was detained on I-70 outside of Indianapolis last December, as captured by police bodycam footage. A week before the traffic encounter, Idaho police issued a public appeal for information regarding a white Hyundai Elantra.
Kohberger was subsequently apprehended at his parents' home in Pennsylvania on December 30. His legal team filed a separate defense last month, contending that the DNA evidence connecting him to the knife sheath may have been planted.
In a criminal affidavit filed in January, shortly after Kohberger's arrest, it is stated that the suspect's DNA was discovered on a knife sheath recovered near the corpses of Mogen and Goncalves.
Later, investigators closely matched the DNA on the sheath to DNA discovered in trash from Kohberger's parents' Pennsylvania residence, where he was arrested in December.
According to sources, the sheath discovered at the crime site belonged to a seven-inch utility knife, which is a common hunting instrument for chopping firewood and severing wire and twine. This blade has not been located. The trial of Kohberger is scheduled for October 2.
