NBC’s Dateline may have interfered with the case of the four University of Idaho student murders. The attorneys for the suspect, Bryan Kohberger, have asked for a trial delay due to a Dateline special they considered prejudicial to Kohberger, according to the New York Post.
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Dateline Special May Have Delayed University of Idaho Stabbings Case
Tuesday’s filing claimed that an August trial would infringe on the suspect’s constitutional rights. This follows the 2022 case of four University of Idaho students who were found stabbed to death in their off-campus residence in Moscow, per NBC News.
They didn’t immediately name a suspect for the deaths of 21-year-old Madison Mogen, 21-year-old Kaylee Goncalves, 20-year-old Xana Kernodle, and 20-year-old Ethan Chapin. It took seven weeks before the police announced they had arrested Kohberger.
So far, the court has yet to make a ruling on the request for a trial delay. Fourth District Judge Steven Hippler announced he would identify anyone who may have violated a gag order.
This could be linked to the Dateline special that may have insider information. Hippler requested a list last week of everyone who may have had access to unreported information and details on Kohberger that Dateline included in their May 9 episode.
This may not have been the only information leak, either. The attorneys were just as concerned about an upcoming book that is planned to be released in July. It’s centered around this case, and it may include leaked details.
In the attorneys’ filing, it said the book’s blurb “suggests that the apparent Dateline leak was not the only violation of this Court’s non-dissemination order.”
The filing wrote that this delay was necessary to “fully investigate the leaks and to mitigate the prejudicial effects of such inflammatory pretrial publicity occurring so close to the current trial date.”
More recent updates on this case suggest that the court won’t rule out the death penalty. This is only relevant if they end up convicting Kohberger. Exactly two years ago, Latah County District Judge, John Judge, entered a non-guilty plea on his behalf after he stayed silent when asked about a plea.