Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger appeared in court on Friday and his defense team laid out new details about possible DNA evidence found at the scene that is not connected to him.
According to Guy Tannenbaum of KHQ Local News in Washington, Kohberger's defense team, led by Kootenai County chief public defender Anne Taylor, asked the prosecution to provide three other DNA profiles that were found at the scene that were not Kohberger's.
"We've given everything we've gotten from the lab. I don't know what else to say. We've given everything that we know to exist," Latah County prosecutor Bill Thompson said in response, Tannenbaum reported from inside the courtroom. "They're asking for something that doesn't exist. We'll put in another inquiry to the lab for other communications, but as far as we know everything has already been provided to [the defense]."
Thompson getting a little fired up here. He says "they're asking for something that doesn't exist. We'll put in another inquiry to the lab for other communications, but as far as we know everything has already been provided to [the defense]."
— Guy Tannenbaum (@guytannenbaum) August 18, 2023
Kohberger, 28, has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. He was arrested in December following a lengthy investigation into the fatal stabbings of four University of Idaho students, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Ethan Chapin, 20 and Xana Kernodle, 20.
In May, Kohberger's attorneys said their client was standing silent resulting in the judge to enter not-guilty pleas for each of the charges against him. Shortly after his arrest in December, Kohberger's former attorney Jason LaBar said that his client was "eager to be exonerated."
Prosecutors previously said that a DNA sample taken via a buccal swab from Kohberger's cheek while in custody statistically matched the DNA profile found on a knife sheath at the scene of the crime. Thompson also previously filed a court document announcing the state of Idaho was planning to seek the death penalty against Kohberger.
Thompson wrote in the death penalty filing that Kohberger acted "reckless indifference to human life," and "exhibited utter disregard for human life."
Despite evidence provided by prosecutors in the case, Kohberger's legal team has continued to maintain his innocence.
In response to the DNA match obtained following his arrest, Kohberger's legal team said, "There is no connection between Mr. Kohberger and the victims. There is no explanation for the total lack of DNA evidence from the victims in Mr. Kohberger's apartment, office, home, or vehicle."
Additionally, Kohberger's legal team also filed another motion this month responding to prosecutor's request for an alibi and claimed that the 28-year-old often drove at late hours of the night, alone, including on the nights the murders occurred.
"Mr. Kohberger has long had a habit of going for drives alone. Often he would go for drives at night. He did so late on November 12 and into November 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. He was out, driving during the late night and early morning hours of November 12-13, 2022," the filing said.
Newsweek reached out to Kohberger's public defender, Anne Taylor, via email for comment.
