The attorneys for Bryan Kohberger are asking Latah County District Court to remove cameras from the courtroom during future hearings involving the suspect in the Moscow quadruple homicide case.
In a recent court filing signed by attorney Jay Logsdon, he argued the camera’s focus on Kohberger impedes his right to a fair trial.
Logsdon said the media, which he labels as “observers,” were directed by the court in June to cease focusing exclusively on Kohberger and have failed to do so.
Logsdon said photos taken during an Aug. 18 hearing were a “blatant violation” of the court’s directive and were used in articles “with blatantly sensationalistic and prejudicial headlines and content.”
In the Moscow-Pullman Daily News and Lewiston Tribune stories of the Aug. 18 hearing, the online articles included 17 to 20 photos of a variety of subjects: Kohberger, Latah County District Judge John Judge, the four witnesses who testified and the attorneys for the defense and prosecution.
Logsdon said the Kohberger case comes with a risk of prejudice. The videos and photos from court proceedings “gradually poison the potential jury pool.”
“Observers’ continued failure to comply with the Court’s June 27th directive compounds this problem and results in the potential jury pool’s constant inundation with conclusory accusations and sensationalistic nonsense guised as factual reporting and analysis,” he wrote.
Logsdon added the media violated a May 16 court order prohibiting media from using video or images showing papers, documents or notes on the attorneys’ desks during hearings.
Logsdon requested cameras be banned from all future court proceedings during the duration of the Kohberger case, including the trial.
“The press have failed to obey the Court’s directive not to exclusively photograph and record Mr. Kohberger to the exclusion of all else, jeopardizing his ability to undergo fair judicial proceedings, free of undue prejudice and juror bias,” he wrote.
Kohberger faces four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in the November stabbing deaths of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. He faces the death penalty if convicted.
The media must already adhere to restrictions imposed by the court. A gag order, which has been in place since January, prohibits attorneys and law enforcement involved in the case from sharing certain information to the public outside of court.
In another recent court filing, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson asked Judge for more time to prepare for a hearing regarding Kohberger’s grand jury indictment.
Kohberger’s attorneys are fighting the suspect’s grand jury indictment based on what they see as errors in the selection process and the standard of proof required for an indictment. A hearing on Kohberger’s motion to dismiss that indictment was scheduled for Sept. 1.
Thompson is asking for more time to review the defense’s 109-page memo requesting the indictment be dismissed. Thompson stated that the defense has agreed to his request.
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