Prosecutors say Brian Koberger’s alibi for the murder of an Idaho student was too vague, saying he was driving while looking at the moon and stars.
Now they are asking a judge that the defense will call witnesses other than himself to prove that the defendant was not at his home on King Road during the stabbing that killed University of Idaho student Maddy. requesting that further requests be denied. Morgen Gonsalves and Kaylee Gonsalves (both 21), her housemate Zana Karnodol (20), and her visiting boyfriend Ethan Chapin (also 20).
“Apart from the reference to Wawa Wai Park (which is new), the defendant offers nothing new to his original ‘alibi’ that he was simply driving around in his car on the morning of November 13, 2022.” said Bill, the Rutter County Prosecuting Attorney. Thompson wrote in a court filing.
Idaho murder case: Defense attorney Brian Koberger ‘firmly believes’ suspect’s innocence
Brian Koberger enters the courtroom for a hearing at the Rutter County Courthouse on June 27, 2023 in Moscow, Idaho. Koberger is accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022. (August Frankpool/Getty Images)
“As the State pointed out at its August 2023 hearing, the State learned that defendant was driving through rural Whitman County, Washington, and Rutter County, Idaho, in the early morning hours of November 13, 2022. Indeed, defendant’s travels during that time are documented in the original probable cause affidavit supporting the criminal charges in this case.
Read the prosecutor’s filing.
But prosecutors’ concerns may not be enough to convince a judge, said Edwina Ell, a Boise-based defense attorney who previously represented “Cult Mom” murderer Lori Vallow. Cox says.
“It’s not up to the state to decide what is and isn’t defense-related,” he told Fox News Digital. “Try as much as you can to control the narrative.”
She noted that Koberger has a constitutional right to a defense and called the filing “amount to a tantrum on the part of the prosecution.”
“Approximately 11 months have passed since the state submitted a “request for discovery of evidence and a request for alibi” on May 23, 2023, and almost a year and a half since the murder occurred. He has a legal right to prove his alibi.
More than a year after the murder, Koberger’s lawyer submitted an alibi to the court, claiming he was simply driving the car.
Lutter County Prosecutor Bill Thompson speaks with Wendy Olson (left) and Cory Carone during a motion hearing for a gag order in the case against Brian Koberger in Lutter County District Court on June 9, 2023 in Moscow, Idaho. Mr. June 9, 2023. (Zach Wilkinson/Moscow Pullman Daily News, Associated Press, Pool)
“Mr. Koberger was out in his car in the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, as he often does to hike, run, and look at the moon and stars,” the attorneys wrote. “He drove the entire area south of Pullman, Washington, and west of Moscow, Idaho, including Wawawai Park.”
Other experts agree with Thompson’s argument that the alibi falls short.
“The state’s response was short, sweet and to the point,” said David Gellman, a former prosecutor and now a New Jersey-based defense attorney. Not,” he said.
Rutter County Judge John C. will schedule an arraignment hearing for Brian Koberger, who is accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022, in Moscow, Idaho, on May 22, 2023. Presiding in Latah County District Court. (Zach Wilkinson Pool/Getty Images)
Gelman argued that defendant’s denial that he was at the crime scene was not sufficient to prove that he was elsewhere.
He said he “did not provide any specificity about his whereabouts at the time in question, nor did he name any witnesses he relied on to establish his defence.” “It is not an alibi as contemplated by law. The trial court should not allow the defense to mount an alibi defense based on the meager information provided.”
The defense team planned to call a cell phone data expert to support the alibi claim. Prosecutors argue that his alibi is too vague and should not be allowed.
Brian Koberger arrives at Pennsylvania’s Monroe County Courthouse ahead of his much-anticipated extradition hearing. He is charged with killing four University of Idaho students. (Fox News Digital Image Direct)
This is the latest in a legal tug-of-war between prosecutors and Mr. Koberger’s team.
A judge last month allowed the defense to resume questioning potential jurors after a temporary cease-and-desist order. Alarmed county residents were so disturbed by the investigation that they called police, according to court filings. But the judge ultimately ruled that the investigation could continue as part of Koberger’s attempt to prove juror bias and argue for a change of venue.
Prosecutors allege Koberger was a masked man who broke into a residence just off the University of Idaho campus around 4 a.m. on Nov. 13, 2022.
Brian Koberger appears in a courtroom in Moscow, Idaho, on October 26, 2023. (Kai Eiselein/Pool)
Idaho murder suspect Brian Koberger didn’t notify victim, lawyer says
When police arrived the next morning, they found four college students dead inside the house.
Madison Morgen, top left, poses with Ethan Chapin, Zana Karnodle and two other housemates in Gonsalves’ last Instagram post, which was shared the day before the four students were stabbed to death. , smiling on the shoulder of her best friend Kaylee Gonsalves. (@kayleegoncalves/Instagram)
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Mr. Koberger was studying for a Ph.D. A criminology major at nearby Washington State University, he is charged with four counts of felony first-degree murder and robbery.
Police allegedly found his DNA on a knife sheath found under Morgen’s body, according to a probable cause affidavit related to his arrest warrant.
If convicted, he could be sentenced to death.
