A judge ruled Thursday that prosecutors could seek the death penalty against Bryan Kohberger if he is found guilty of the 2022 slaying of four University of Idaho students.
Judge Steven Hippler issued his decision after Kohberger’s attorneys asked the court to bar the sentence due to his autism diagnosis.
Prosecutors previously indicated in court filings they intended to seek the death penalty with a conviction.
Bryan Kohberger enters the courtroom for his arraignment hearing in Latah County District Court, May 22, 2023, in Moscow, Idaho. Kohberger is accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022. (Zach Wilkinson-Pool/Getty Images)
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Defense attorneys in court documents argued Kohberger’s autism spectrum disorder (ASD) “reduces his culpability, negates the retributive and deterrent purposes of capital punishment, and exposes him to the unacceptable risk that he will be wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death,” according to a report from The Associated Press.
They added it could be considered cruel and unusual punishment, which is outlawed by the Eighth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Bryan Kohberger, accused of murder, arrives for a hearing in Latah County District Court Sept. 13, 2023, in Moscow, Idaho. (Ted S. Warren-Pool/Getty Images)
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Hippler said Kohberger’s attorneys failed to show that ASD is equivalent to an intellectual disability for death penalty exemption purposes, and there is no national consensus against subjecting individuals with ASD to capital punishment, the AP reported.
“ASD may be a mitigating factor to be weighed against the aggravating factors in determining if defendant should receive the death penalty, but it is not (a) death-penalty disqualified,” Hippler said.
Madison Mogen, top left, smiles on the shoulders of her best friend, Kaylee Goncalves, as they pose with Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and two other housemates in Goncalves’ final Instagram post, shared the day before the four students were stabbed to death. (@kayleegoncalves/Instagram)
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The 30-year-old is charged with four counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20, who were stabbed to death at an off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho, at about 4 a.m. Nov. 13, 2022.
Authorities have noted suspicious behavior, like Kohberger allegedly turning off his phone before driving home and changing his license plates days after the killings.
An investigator carries an evidence bag during a search of Bryan Kohberger’s home in Pullman, Wash., Dec. 30, 2022. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
However, authorities claim to have a key piece of evidence, saying they found Kohberger’s DNA on a Ka-Bar knife sheath found under Mogen’s body.
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The former criminology Ph.D. student is also charged with felony burglary, Fox News Digital previously reported.
A judge entered his not-guilty pleas in May 2023, though the trial is not expected to begin until Aug. 11.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Ruiz and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
