Bryan Kohberger Is Being Kept Away From Other Inmates for His Safety

• Bryan Kohberger is accused of breaking into a home in Moscow, Idaho, and killing four University of Idaho students last November.
• He has been held in an Idaho jail while he awaits a June preliminary hearing.
• There, Kohberger is kept in a separate cell from other inmates and not allowed to interact with them.
• That's for Kohberger's safety as well as the safety of other inmates, according to former FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer.

Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of stabbing to death four University of Idaho students, is being kept isolated from other jail inmates for his safety and theirs, a former FBI agent told Newsweek.

Kohberger, 28, is accused of breaking into a rental home near the university campus in Moscow, Idaho, on November 13, 2022, and killing Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.

He has not yet entered a plea to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary, but a lawyer who represented him in Pennsylvania after his arrest there on December 30 said he was "eager to be exonerated."

Kohberger, who was attending nearby Washington State University at the time of the killings, has been held at the Latah County Jail in Moscow since his extradition in early January. He is scheduled for a preliminary hearing in late June.

In recent weeks, details have emerged about Kohberger's life inside the small jail below the Latah County Courthouse, which can house about 40 inmates.

Kohberger is kept separated from the other inmates in the jail. While he is reportedly allowed to sit near other inmates during church services, he is not permitted to interact with them.

Because he is held in a cell of his own, Kohberger is allowed his own television, with basic cable service, while other inmates have to share TV.

It is necessary to keep Kohberger away from other inmates because of the risk that he could be harmed by other inmates, former FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer told Newsweek.

"They have to keep someone like Bryan Kohberger in solitary, away from the rest of the inmates, because of the notoriety of this case," she said. "Of course, those inmates likely know what he's accused of doing. The danger to him is too great to put him in the population with the rest of the inmates staying there."

Another inmate could attempt to harm Kohberger "either out of anger over the situation or out of them wanting their own notoriety," she said.

But he is also detained in a separate cell because he could pose a threat to other inmates, Coffindaffer said. "This is somebody accused of murdering four people," she added.

Before the killings of the four students, Moscow had not had a homicide since 2015. Most inmates at the Latah County Jail are being held on much less serious charges, Coffindaffer said.

"He's certainly the most notorious individual they've ever had," she said. "And remember, he's in there with people that have been pulled over for DUI, shoplifting, minor assaults, fraud—things that are of a much less egregious nature. It's important that he be kept separate."