Demolition of University of Idaho murder house delayed until after Bryan Kohberger trial

Demolition of the home where four University of Idaho students were savagely murdered last year has been suspended while murder suspect Bryan Kohberger is trialed over the murders, the college announced Wednesday.

The three-story home on King Road in Moscow, Idaho, will remain intact until at least October, as the local population continues to grieve the 20 and 21-year-old students found slain Nov. 13 last year.

“On the one hand, some people want it taken down. It is a constant reminder of the heinous acts that went on inside it,” University of Idaho President Scott Green wrote Wednesday in a school-wide memo.  

“On the other hand, it elicits deep emotional responses from those who are working through grief and who fear that its destruction could impact the court case.”

The house, which is now owned by the university, “has stood as a stark reminder of what was lost,” he said.

“We lost our innocence and our sense of safety. We realized that evil can visit our town and we lost four bright souls from our Vandal Family.”

Bryan Kohberger, 28, has been charged with breaking into the home — just steps from campus — and fatally stabbing Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, both 20, and Maddie Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, both 21.

It is possible that the home may be needed during the trial. Either for evidence purposes or potentially for jurors to visit.

The victims were discovered with fatal knife wounds the next day on the second and third floors of the home.

The women had all lived in the home with two other roommates, both of whom were on the first floor at the time of the stabbings but survived.

Kohberger, a 28-year-old former criminology student, was arrested Dec. 30, 2022, and later indicted on charges of felony burglary and four counts of first-degree murder over the killings. A plea of not guilty was entered on his behalf at his arraignment in May.

He is scheduled to stand trial Oct. 2, but a judge announced this week it could be moved to November if Kohberger’s team need more time to prepare. However, the judge overseeing the case warned: “precious time is ticking”.

Prosecutors have said they plan to seek the death penalty against Kohberger.

The university took ownership of the King Road property months after the killings, and announced in February its plans to demolish it.

The property is currently in the process of remediation which involves lead and asbestos removal, the school said.

Work will then come to a standstill until the university reaches a decision.

“We still fully expect to demolish the house, which was given to the university by the former owner,” Green went on.

“But we believe leaving the house standing, for now, is the right course to take.”