Man accused of killing four students appears in court with scratches on face
The alleged University of Idaho murderer waived his right to a speedy trial as he appeared in court with scratches on his face.
Bryan Kohberger, 28, made a brief appearance in Latah County Courthouse in Moscow, Idaho, US, after he was charged with the alleged murders of Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21.
He appeared in court in an orange t-shirt with scratches to his face and only spoke "yes" when asked if he understood his rights to a speedy preliminary hearing within the next 14 days.
Kohberger was questioned if he agreed to waive those rights as his lawyer, Anne Taylor, demanded his next court to be pushed back until June.
His request was accepted by the prosecution and the judge moved his next preliminary hearing for the week beginning 26 June.
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The accused, a PhD student studying criminology at Washington State University, has been charged with four counts of murder and and one count of burglary, after four students were stabbed to death on November 13 in Moscow, Idaho.
Kohberger's lawyer revealed he plans to challenge the evidence against him.
He has waived his right to a speedy trial (Matt Rourke/AP/REX/Shutterstock)In addition, he was also refused bail for a second time and will remain behind bars at Latah County Jail. Kohberger has not yet entered a plea.
Kaylee Goncalves' parents Steve and Kristi have demanded the death penalty for their daughter's alleged killer.
Dad Steve wanted the death penalty for the suspect as he believes being able to read and have three meals a day in prison is not a punishment.
He told NewsNation: "Justice doesn't have a room where you can read books and you can go to school and you can have three meals and you can have your vegan diet.
"To me, that's not justice. Justice is when you leave the planet, and the whole world is able to rejoice and be glad that you're not there."
Students Kaylee Goncalves (second from left, bottom) and Madison Mogen (second from left, top), Ethan Chapin (center) and Xana Kernodle (second from right) were stabbed to death (ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)
Madison Mogen, 21, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were found stabbed to death in their beds (ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)Mum Kristi had revealed she was "glad they live in Idaho" as the state has the death penalty.
When she was faced with her daughter's alleged killer in the dock she "expected to feel an immense amount of hate" but instead felt "nothing" when she looked at Kohberger.
The pair said: "We will forgive him. We will. We're not going to have that heavy weight on us.
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"We will forgive this individual, but he has to pay for what he's done. And it's not just our daughter, it's all the victims he needs to pay, pay justice to.
"If our daughters could switch places with him. And I'm saying Maddie, as my daughter would do it in a heartbeat if they could sit there and have three squares, a place to live and we could call them we could write them letters.
"They could watch TV they could get educated. I would love if Maddie and Kaylee were doing life in prison right now.
"At least we could talk to them. They'd be breathing, that's not a punishment equivalent to being killed."
Victims Madison Mogen, 21, (left) and Xana Kernodle, 20, who were killed with two other University of Idaho students, stabbed to death in their beds as they slept, in their off-campus home, on November 13 (Mad greek/ZUMA Press Wire Service/REX/Shutterstock)Kohberger, who was extradited from Pennsylvania to Moscow to face charges, allegedly made an off-hand comment to officers saying that it was “sad what happened" to the four students.
A law enforcement source reportedly said: “He did say, ‘It’s really sad what happened to them,’ but he didn’t say anything more. He’s smarter than that.”
Kohberger is accused of stalking the victims at least 12 times before the alleged stabbings.
Kohberger allegedly murdered four University of Idaho students (Monroe County PA Correctional Fa/ZUMA Press Wire Service/REX/Shutterstock)In addition, documents revealed his DNA was found on a knife sheath near the bodies of Kaylee Goncalves and Maddie Mogen.
The FBI were able to match the DNA with the suspect after taking a sample from his rubbish outside his home in Pennsylvania.
He was caught wearing gloves as he took the bins out, according to police.
Meanwhile, students returned to the campus yesterday for the first time since the suspect was arrested.
Some students had been taking self-defence classes in preparation for their return.
Jodi Walker, a university spokesperson, said: "The students are back and enrolments are looking good.
“I think everybody’s happy to be back under the circumstances. They’re relieved that an arrest has been made, and ready to focus on the semester.”
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