University of Idaho Murders: Case Updates | MURDERISH Ep. 218

About this episode

As if the families of Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves, and Maddie Mogen haven’t been through enough, the killer has forced his way back into the headlines. From a segregated cell south of Boise, where he’s serving four life sentences, Bryan Kohberger has launched a long-shot petition to vacate his guilty plea, alleging ineffective counsel, undisclosed evidence and a botched deal. In a handwritten motion provided to the New York Times in late July, the convicted murderer said he wants the state to prove its case at trial, even if it means facing the death penalty, an outcome taken off the table as part of his plea agreement. Even though Kohberger has been granted an evidentiary hearing scheduled for June 2027, legal experts say the motion has almost no chance of succeeding. The one-time PhD student proclaimed aloud in an Ada County Courthouse in July 2025 that he was responsible for the deaths of Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves, and Maddie Mogen. The four college friends were murdered the morning of July 13th, 2022, inside a home they shared just off campus. While the victims’ families await a judge’s decision on Kohberger’s motion, they remain embroiled