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Idaho Prosecutors Disclose Internal Affairs Investigation Of Officer Involved In Bryan Kohberger Case
Prosecutors disclosed the information to the defense after they became aware of "potential Brady/Giglio material" related to an unnamed officer involved in the quadruple homicide investigation.
Idaho prosecutors have disclosed evidence connected to an internal affairs investigation involving one of the officers who played a role in the University of Idaho quadruple homicide investigation.
The Latah County Prosecutor’s Office filed notice of the disclosure to the defense Monday after noting that the state had “become aware of potential Brady/Giglio material related to one of the officers involved” in the case against Bryan Kohberger, the former criminology PhD student accused of brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students at an off-campus residence in November, according to court documents obtained by Oxygen.com.
Prosecutors described the evidence as a “confidential internal affairs investigation” and asked the judge to issue a protective order to keep the information from being released to the public because it concerned a personnel issue.
It’s not clear what role the officer played in the murder investigation.
Judge Megan E. Marshall agreed to issue the protective order the following day, instructing prosecutors and defense attorneys not to disclose the contents of the documents, according to the court records.
Prosecutors were obligated to disclose the information to Kohberger’s attorneys as a result of the Supreme Court cases Brady v. Maryland and Giglio v. United States, WNEP reports.
Brady material is considered any material that could prove a defendant’s innocence, while Giglio material refers to information that could impeach the credibility of a witness.
"It could be anything that would tend to impair the credibility of that particular individual, officer, or witness, depending upon what it is. I mean, sometimes you have an internal affairs investigation that doesn't even really directly relate to the officer," criminal defense attorney Brett Riegel explained to WNEP.
According to Riegel, prosecutors likely wanted to disclose the information to avoid a possible appeal down the road.
"The last thing a prosecution wants is to have to do a case twice. So, they want to make sure that they have met the due process obligations and provide the things that they're required to provide because that is the only way they get to do the case once," he said.
Kohberger has been accused of sneaking into an off-campus Moscow, Idaho residence in the early morning hours of Nov. 13 and brutally stabbing Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20, to death.
Two other roommates, including one who chillingly reported seeing the masked killer inside the home that morning, were not targeted and survived.
Authorities linked the murders to Kohberger, a PhD student studying criminal justice and criminology at the nearby Washington State University, after linking him to DNA found on a leather knife sheath left on Mogen’s bed, according to an affidavit in the case.
During a search of his Pullman, Washington apartment, investigators also found a pillow with reddish brown strains on it. Along with the pillow, investigators also seized a nitrite black glove, computer tower, possible strand of hair, dust container from a vacuum and other items while searching the apartment on Dec. 30, according to court documents previously obtained by Oxygen.com.
Kohberger was arrested in late December at his family’s home in Pennsylvania. He has yet to enter a plea to the charges against him.
