Idaho Stabbings Trial Will Be Moved After Defense Said Locals Would ‘Burn The Courthouse Down’

A judge on Friday granted defense attorneys’ request for a venue change in the high-profile trial of the man accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students in their off-campus house in 2022.

Defense attorneys for Bryan Kohberger, the former criminology graduate student charged with four counts of murder in the brutal slayings of Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kermodle and Ethan Chapin, had argued a telephone survey showed residents speculating that people would “riot,” “burn the courthouse down” and possibly kill him if he was acquitted. On Monday, Judge John C. Judge agreed that Kohberger could not receive a fair trial in Latah County, where the killings took place, saying in court filings that local residents had been influenced by the widespread news coverage and social media speculation about the case, some of it “potentially prejudicial and false.”

The judge noted that Kohberger has been the subject of “extensive negative publicity” since his Dec. 30, 2022, arrest after investigators said his DNA was found on a knife sheath found at the crime scene. A not guilty plea was later entered on his behalf after he refused to speak at his arraignment.

The family of Kaylee Goncalves said on Monday they are “incredibly disappointed” with the ruling in a statement shared by their attorney with HuffPost.

“We have always felt that a fair and impartial jury could be found in Latah County and still believe that is where the trial deserves to be held to help the community heal,” said the family.

But some residents were afraid the community could be at risk of violent vigilantism if a jury ruled in Kohberger’s favor, according to some respondents to the telephone survey, which was conducted by social