Kohberger and his lawyer filed this objection because they are seeking a detailed breakdown of how genetic genealogy was utilized to help the FBI initially identify Kohberger as a person of interest in the case.
Bryan Kohberger and his defense team are giving a glimpse into the suspected University of Idaho killer's defense in a new court filing.
Investigators found DNA from three men at the murder scene, writes defense attorney Jay Weston Logsdon in an objection to the state's motion for a protective order obtained by Inside Edition.
Logsdon says that investigators found the DNA from two men inside the house, and a third outside the residence on a glove.
None of this DNA matches that of Bryan Kohberger says Logsdon, noting that the DNA was never run through CODIS (Combined DNA Index System) in hopes of finding a direct match.
Kohberger and his lawyer filed this objection because they are seeking a detailed breakdown of how genetic genealogy was utilized to help the FBI initially identify Kohberger as a person of interest in the case.
The state is arguing that since DNA from a buccal swab provided by the suspect matched the DNA found on a knife sheath at the scene, the genetic genealogy results will play no role in the upcoming trial and are inconsequential to proving the suspect's guilt or innocence.
In response, Kohberger and his lawyers outline what they believe to be the perceived holes in the case, starting with the DNA.
The presence of DNA from other men at or near the crime scene could explain why it took six weeks to arrest Kohberger.
MOTION FOR PROTECTIVE ORDER REGARDING USE OF GENETIC GENEOLOGY TO IDENTIFY BRYAN KOHBERGER
"While this was ongoing, police were investigating many various possible suspects. Many of them provided DNA," Logsdon writes. "At least one had his DNA surreptitiously taken from discarded cigarette. Many also had their phones taken and downloaded."
The filing also claims that there is a "total lack of DNA evidence from the victims in Mr. Kohberger’s apartment, office, home, or vehicle."
Another piece of evidence that the defense believes is lacking is the identification of the suspect's car.
The probable cause affidavit references a "white sedan" but makes no mention of make or model. Logsdon says that there is only one sighting of a vehicle that is certainly a Hyundai Elantra.
Kohberger owned and drove a 2016 Elantra.
"Precisely how the police came to believe the car was an Elantra is still unknown," writes Logsdon. "A report from an analyst for the FBI dated March 21, 2023 shows the analyst heavily relying on video of car heading in the wrong direction and at the wrong time on Ridge Rd."
It is also seems that as Kohberger seeks to delay providing the defense with his alibi, prosecutors may similarly be stalling when it comes to providing the defense with a motive — if they have even determined one at this time. Lagsdon writes that as of his filing the objection, prosecutors have provided the defense with no evidence of a "connection between Mr. Kohberger and the victims."
There is one connection according to prosecutors, who claim in their motion for a protective order that the DNA on the knife sheath found near two of the victims is a direct match to Kohberger's DNA.
In their initial motion seeking a protective order, prosecutors write about the discovery of the knife sheath containing a trace amount of DNA that they claim is a match to that of Kohberger.
"Law enforcement found a Ka-Bar knife sheath on the bed next to the bodies of Madison and Kaylee," the motion states. "The sheath was face down and partially under both Madison’s body and the comforter on the bed."
The objection filed by Logsdon argues that the entire case is built upon this genetic genealogy that led the FBI to identify Kohberger as a suspect, and claims that withholding this information is akin to hiding the root of the murder investigation.
Logsdon writes about his client: "A massive investigation came to focus on him and him alone. The State appears to be trying to hide its original domino such that he cannot discover why. Mr. Kohberger has right to discover and question the investigation that led to him."
The case has received national attention ever since the bodies of four University of Idaho students were found dead in a house just off the school’s Moscow campus in November.
Interest in the case only grew during the six weeks it took police to finally make an arrest.
Kohberger was eventually apprehended in the early morning hours of Dec. 30 at his childhood home in Pennsylvania.
A probable cause affidavit said that his arrest came just days after investigators matched DNA found in trash pulled from Kohberger’s home to DNA found on a knife sheath discovered at the murder scene, utilizing genetic genealogy.
Once in custody, Kohberger provided a buccal swab that proved to be a direct match to the DNA on that sheath.
Authorities have yet to find the weapon that killed those students: Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20.
Kohberger had previously told the public defender assigned to handle his extradition from Pennsylvania to Idaho that he expects to be exonerated of all charges at trial.
The judge has yet to rule on the state's motion for a protective order, and all involved in the investigation and trial are unable to comment due to a strict and sweeping nondissemination order that continues to be in effect.
