Bryan Kohberger Deals Blow to Idaho Murder Victim's Family

The fears of Kaylee Goncalves' family were realized Wednesday when the capital murder trial of Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of slaying four University of Idaho students, was indefinitely postponed.

Under Idaho state law, criminal defendants must receive a trial date within six months of arraignment unless they waive the right, which Kohberger did during his status hearing on Wednesday, effectively canceling the October 2 start date. The trial update comes just a few days after Judge John Judge of Idaho's 2nd Judicial District in Latah County set a September 15 deadline for Kohberger to make his decision.

Kohberger could face the death penalty if convicted of killing Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Ethan Chapin, 20, and Xana Kernodle, 20, who were all found stabbed to death on November 13 at a shared residence near the college the victims attended in Moscow.

On the Goncalves family's public Facebook account, a post shared Wednesday prior to the court hearing said, "Please pray for our family today," adding in a comment that they were afraid Kohberger would waive his right.

Newsweek reached out via email on Wednesday to Kootenai County, where Kohberger's lead attorney, Anne Taylor, works as a public defender. Newsweek reached out via Facebook to the Goncalves family.

In a response to a comment on the Facebook post, the person monitoring the Goncalves family's account said: "We are afraid he's going to waive his rights to a speedy trial. If he does, trial will not be starting on October 2nd and it is very likely that it won't take place for years. We want to get this trial over. Just thinking it could be years absolutely kills me."

It is unclear who made the Facebook post and subsequent comment on the Goncalves family's page, which often shares photos of Kaylee and Madison and updates on the trial.

Kohberger, a doctoral student at Washington State University, was arrested at his parents' home in late December and charged with four murder counts. The home where Goncalves, Mogen, Chapin and Kernodle were found stabbed to death was roughly eight miles from Kohberger's campus.

In May, a grand jury indicted Kohberger on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. The judge overseeing his arraignment entered a "not guilty" plea on his behalf, since Kohberger refused to speak.

Kohberger has been in custody at the Latah County Jail, for nearly eight months. If he is convicted, prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty, which has divided the victims' parents.

Goncalves' father Steve and mother Kristi Goncalves have announced their support for the death penalty, as has Mogen's father, Ben Mogen.

Kernodle's mother, Cara Kernodle, has stated she is against the death penalty while also saying she hopes Kohberger "spends the rest of his days in prison."

Chapin's family members have not expressed their views publicly.

Kohberger's next court appearance is scheduled for September 1, when Judge will hear the defense's motion to dismiss the grand jury indictments. However, the trial schedule may change as a result of Wednesday's outcome.