负责布莱恩·科伯格谋杀案的法官统治随着案件的进展，死刑将继续保留，拒绝了Kohberger辩护律师的请求。
2023年6月，检察官宣布，他们打算对这位被指控在2022年11月致命刺伤四名爱达荷大学学生的前博士生判处死刑，这四名学生是21岁的凯莉·冈萨尔维斯、21岁的麦迪森·摩根、20岁的夏之纳·克诺德尔和20岁的伊桑·查平。
今年9月，Kohberger的律师大张旗鼓地争取废除死刑，在数百页的法庭文件中，他们认为Kohberger的生命不应该受到威胁，因为，除其他外，死刑会侵犯他的宪法权利以及当代的正派标准。
然而，在周三的一份冗长的文件中，法官史蒂文·希普勒驳回了Kohberger挑战爱达荷州死刑计划各个方面的所有12项动议。
在他长达55页的判决中，希普勒法官“得出结论，任何动议都不能保证有利于(Kohberger)的救济。”
此外，辩护律师认为死刑与当前的社会道德格格不入。然而，法官裁定“没有依据背离支持爱达荷州死刑法令符合宪法的既定法律”，而且它仍然“符合当代的体面标准。”
辩护律师还认为，在这种情况下，基于执行方法，应该取消死刑——具体来说，引用致命注射药物的短缺，并认为去年在爱达荷州成为合法的行刑队处决是“残忍和不寻常的”而且，他们认为，让他们的委托人在不知道“他将如何被处决”的情况下等待死刑本身就是一种“违反宪法”的折磨。
但法官再次不同意——支持检察官的观点，认为讨论这一论点“时机还不成熟”,因为Kohberger还没有被定罪。而且，法官继续说，即使现在解决是合适的，行刑队和致命注射都被认为是符合宪法的，在该州是允许的。
法官还否决了辩方试图打击检察官发现的加重因素的每一项尝试，这些因素使Kohberger有资格被判处死刑。
Kohberger在2022年12月经过六周的搜捕后被捕。
案发时，Kohberger是附近的华盛顿州立大学的犯罪学学生，他被指控犯有四项一级谋杀罪和一项入室盗窃罪。
他被判无罪。
审判定于2025年8月进行。
Idaho college killings to remain a death penalty case
The judge overseeing Bryan Kohberger's murder case hasruledthe death penalty will remain on the table as the case moves forward, rejecting a request from Kohberger's defense attorneys.
In June 2023, prosecutors announced they intended to seek the death penalty against the onetime Ph.D. student accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students -- Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20 -- in November 2022.
This September, lawyers for Kohberger made a sweeping play to get capital punishment tossed out, arguing -- in hundreds of pages of court filings -- that Kohberger's life should not be on the line because, among other things, the death penalty would violate his constitutional rights as well as contemporary standards of decency.
However, in a lengthy filing Wednesday, Judge Steven Hippler ruled against all twelve of Kohberger's motions challenging various aspects of Idaho's capital punishment scheme.
In his 55-page decision Judge Hippler "concludes relief in [Kohberger's] favor is not warranted on any of the motions."
Among other things, defense attorneys had argued that the death penalty is out of step with current social mores. However, the judge ruled "there is no basis to depart from settled law upholding Idaho's death penalty statute as constitutional," and it remains "consistent with contemporary standards of decency."
Defense attorneys also argued that capital punishment should be stricken in this case on the basis of execution methods — specifically, citing the shortage of lethal injection drugs, and arguing that firing squad executions which, last year, became legal in Idaho are "cruel and unusual." And, they argued, letting their client wait on death row without knowing "how he will be executed" is itself an "unconstitutional" form of torment.
But the judge again disagreed — siding with prosecutors that that argument "is not ripe" for discussion, because Kohberger hasn't been convicted yet. And, the judge continued, even if it were appropriate to address now, both the firing squad and lethal injection have been found constitutional and are allowed in the state.
The judge also ruled against each of the defense's attempts to strike the aggravating factors prosecutors had found, which made Kohberger eligible for the death penalty.
Kohberger was arrested following a six-week manhunt in December 2022.
A criminology student at nearby Washington State University at the time of the crime, Kohberger was charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary.
A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf.
The trial is scheduled for August 2025.
