BOISE, Idaho — Editor's Note: Watch Thursday's hearing below:
The man accused of killing four University of Idaho students is expected to appear in an Ada County Courtroom Thursday morning.
According to newly filed court documents, the court will discuss the death penalty among other motions surrounding the case against Bryan Kohberger.
Some of those motions include the following:
- Street Clothing at Public Hearings (closed)
- Method of Execution
- Arbitrariness
Last month, Kohberger's defense replied to the state's objection to strike the death penalty. According to documents, the state argued that issues with the manner of execution aren't "ripe," and that lethal injection and firing squad are approved methods of killing.
According to the documents, the defense argues that "if the delay and uncertainties about any eventual execution was a reason not to litigate such issues then much of the case law requiring these issues to be raised in the trial court needs revisiting."
Kohberger's defense team also argued that millions of taxpayer dollars are being spent on the case because of the State seeking the death penalty.
"The time and money being expended on what the State implies is merely a hypothetical would itself be an injustice," the defense argued. "Unfortunately, the death penalty remains too real a possibility to be ignored."
The defense also said it acknowledges that the general judicial approach to the manner of execution claims is to "consider them as an afterthought." However, Kohberger's defense team argues in the documents that the State has no real plan to carry it out.
The hearing is expected to begin on Thursday, November 7, at 8:30 a.m. Mountain Time (7:30 a.m. PST).
