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Kohberger defense highlights key piece of information prosecution has failed to produce
Criminal defense attorney Lexie Rigden on Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger’s defense team’s effort to throw out key evidence in the trial.
A new court filing reveals the defense team for Idaho college quadruple murder suspect Bryan Kohberger is planning to argue at trial that the knife sheath found at the crime scene was potentially planted by the real killer.
In the state’s filing released on Tuesday, prosecutors summarized a defense filing that appears to be sealed.
“Instead of challenging the conclusion that the DNA on the knife sheath belonged to Defendant, the defense’s expert disclosures reveal that the defense plans to argue the DNA on the knife sheath does not prove Defendant was ever at the crime scene and the knife sheath itself could have been planted by the real perpetrator,” the filing reads.
Idaho investigators found a three-person mixture of DNA under 21-year-old University of Idaho undergrad Madison Mogen’s fingernails after she and three friends were killed in her off-campus rental home in Moscow, Idaho, on Nov. 13, 2022, according to previous court filings.
INSIDE IDAHO MURDERS SUSPECT BRYAN KOHBERGER’S UNUSUALLY LONG ROUTE HOME TO PENNSYLVANIA
Bryan Kohberger, right, who is accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022, is escorted into a courtroom to appear at a hearing in Latah County District Court, Wednesday, Sept. 13, 2023, in Moscow, Idaho. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, Pool)
The FBI checked two other publicly accessible databases that ultimately led them to Kohberger, who was first identified as a person of interest on Dec. 19, 2022, and arrested on Dec. 30, 2022, in connection to the deaths of Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.
IDAHO POLICE RECOVERED A 3-PERSON MIXTURE OF DNA UNDER MADDIE MOGEN’S FINGERNAILS
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Kohberger’s defense team has sought to undermine the credibility of investigative genetic genealogy research, or IGG, that helped police zero in on him in connection with the quadruple homicide.
The prosecutors’ filing also quotes a defense expert disclosure that prosecutors say reveals Kohberger’s lawyers intend to call an expert in forensic biology and DNA who will testify about the DNA found on the knife sheath.
BRYAN KOHBERGER CASE: FBI’S DNA TACTICS DIDN’T VIOLATE LAW, BUT THEY RAISE ANOTHER PUBLIC SAFETY CONCERN
The DNA recovered on the button of the knife sheath is a crucial piece of evidence in the murder case that has been the center of legal maneuvering ahead of the trial.
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Defense expert Dr. Leah Larkin, a genetic genealogist, testified that based on her review of discovery documents, she believes someone at the FBI violated an internal policy and the terms of service of one or more genealogy databases to come up with the lead that led to Kohberger.
In a pair of redacted motions regarding the evidence, Bicka Barlow, a defense attorney who specializes in attacking DNA evidence, argued that because testing of the samples came back inconclusive, focusing on them could mislead the jury. Additionally, she argued that independent testing conducted for the defense ruled Kohberger out entirely as a contributor.
BRYAN KOHBERGER CASE: IDAHO JUDGE UNSEALS TRANSCRIPT OF CLOSED-DOOR IGG HEARING
Bryan Kohberger enters the courtroom for his arraignment hearing in Latah County District Court. (Zach Wilkinson/Moscow-Pullman Daily News via AP)
Through further discovery, Barlow said the FBI “admitted to” using MyHeritage and GEDMatch (without the “PRO”), databases law enforcement isn’t supposed to search.
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The FBI declined to comment and instead pointed to Ada County Judge Steven Hippler’s Feb. 17 order, which found investigators had not violated Kohberger’s constitutional rights with the IGG searches.
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Kohberger’s trial is scheduled to begin on Aug. 11, and he could face the death penalty if convicted.
Fox News Digital reached out to Kohberger’s attorney for comment.
Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to [email protected]