At last week’s contentious hearing in the Bryan Kohberger case, attorneys on both sides agreed on one item that debunked rumors long in play: that the defendant stalked the victims or followed them on social media.
Prosecutors had objected to questions asked by a jury consultant firm hired by the defense to conduct a survey of potential jurors, which the defense was using to bolster its case for a change of venue, the Idaho Statesman reported. Questioning Bryan Edelman, founder of the firm Trial Innovations, lead prosecutor Bill Thompson mentioned a specific question.
“Mr. Kohberger allegedly stalked one of the victims,” Thompson said, referring to the survey question. “That’s false. You know that to be false. … And your surveyors put that false information into the minds of people who were asked that question who may not have previously heard it.”
That rumor spread after Kohberger’s arrest for the murders of University of Idaho students Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, and Kaylee Goncalves, especially after some family members told media outlets they thought it was true. Neither police nor prosecutors ever confirmed that information, however, although they did serve search warrants on Kohberger’s online activity.
The defense, and Edelman, said that questions like that one were based on widely reported information, true or false, and the questions were designed to see what information potential jurors had heard.
“My focus is to assess whether or not media coverage is prejudicial — prejudicial — and whether or not it’s led to opinions,” Edelman told the prosecutor. “It doesn’t matter if it’s true or not.”
The survey, conducted of 400 potential voters in Latah County, where the murders took place, found that 45 percent of the respondents had read, seen or heard in the news that Kohberger stalked a victim. More than 80 percent of those people told the surveyors they thought Kohberger was guilty, compared to less than 2/3 of those who had not heard those reports.
Thompson argued that the questions violated a gag order preventing attorneys from discussing specifics about the case,
The phone survey of 400 potential jurors in Latah County revealed that 45% of respondents said they had read, seen or heard in the news that Kohberger had stalked one of the victims, Edelman said. Of them, 81% said they believed Kohberger was guilty, versus 57% who said he was guilty if they were unaware of those reports.
Anne Taylor, Kohberger’s public defender, argued that the questions were based on information already widely disseminated by media outlets and were necessary for her case to move the trial out of Latah County. She wants to survey potential jurors in two more counties for that motion.
Judge John Judge said at the hearing he was concerned about some of the questions but did not make a ruling, as CrimeOnline reported. He told the two sides to meet to discuss the issues and come back to court with the results.
Kohberger has pleaded not guilty to all charges against him.
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[Featured image: Bryan Kohberger enters the courtroom for a motion hearing on June 9, 2023. (Zach Wilkinson/Moscow-Pullman Daily News via AP, Pool)]
