Bryan Kohberger: Suspect in University of Idaho Murders Presents Alibi

By Jon Blistein

Bryan Kohberger, the suspect accused of killing four University of Idaho students, is offering up an alibi: He was on a long drive when the homicides occurred last November.

Earlier this week, Kohberger’s lawyer, Anne Taylor, filed a court document stating: “Mr. Kohberger has long had a habit of going for drives alone. Often he would go for drives at night.” Taylor claimed Kohberger was on one of those drives when the four victims — Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20 — were stabbed in their off-campus apartment on Nov. 13, 2022.

“Mr. Kohberger is not claiming to be at a specific location at a specific time; at this time there is not a specific witness to say precisely where Mr. Kohberger was at each moment of the hours between late night November 12, 2022, and early morning November 13, 2022,” Taylor wrote. “He was out, driving during the late night and early morning hours of November 12-13, 2022.”

Kohberger submitted this alibi after prosecutors issued a request asking if one would be brought up during the trial. Idaho has a particular legal statute that mandates defendants must give notice to the state ahead of time if they plan to present an alibi in court.

But while Taylor did offer some alibi for Kohberger, the document she filed was largely an objection to the state’s request. She said Kohberger “has complied to the extent possible at this time.” She also acknowledged the lack of corroborating evidence and suggested some may emerge from either the cross-examination of state’s witnesses or the testimony of defense experts.

Taylor also called the prosecution’s alibi request “an attempt to force the defense to open its work product files and let the state peek inside. The defense has stated all that can firmly be stated at this time. This is not trial by ambush from the defense.”

A not-guilty plea for Kohberger was entered on his behalf when he chose to “stand silent” during his arraignment back in May. Kohberger has been indicted by a grand jury on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary for illegally entering a home with the intention of murdering people. Prosecutors announced in June that they would be seeking the death penalty in the case.