Bryan Kohberger, who is charged with fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students, said he cannot get a fair trial locally and is seeking a venue change 300 miles away. His defense team cites surveys of local residents who predict the townspeople would “lose their minds” if he isn’t found guilty. Defense attorneys said the “corrupted” local media environment has saturated Latah County, Idaho, with prejudicial and inaccurate coverage. They warned that jurors will be under pressure from neighbors to deliver a guilty verdict, regardless of their conscience, reports the Washington Post. In a hearing last week on the change-of-venue request, Kohberger’s defense spent much of their time poring over research and testimony from expert witnesses specializing in media analysis and jury selection. The defense shared results from an anonymous phone survey their experts conducted among residents of Latah and other Idaho counties.
“They’d burn the courthouse down,” said one survey respondent, when asked how they thought Latah County residents would react to a hypothetical acquittal. Another respondent predicted a “riot,” saying Kohberger, 29. wouldn’t last long outside, because someone would do the good ole’ boy justice.” Anne Taylor, Kohberger’s lead public defender, said, “We can’t have this trial here,. There is no way Mr. Kohberger can get a fair and impartial jury.” Though Kohberger has said he expects the evidence to exonerate him, he could face the death penalty if convicted. Prosecutors and the families of the victims have opposed moving the trial from the Moscow-based courthouse; the college town is where 20-year-olds Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle, and 21-year-olds Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves were stabbed to death in their off-campus home in the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2022. The case has drawn international headlines, and became of point of obsession for true-crime fans.
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