KOHBERGER JUDGE TURNS DOWN SODDI DEFENSE

By Bob Walsh

 

Judge Stephen Hippler is running the Kohberger trial in Moscow, Idaho.  That is the rather notorious case of the murder of four University of Idaho students.  Judge Hippler has just ruled against Kohberger's use of the SODDI defense.

This defense (Some Other Dude Did It) is of course the basis of a lot of criminal defense strategy.  In this case the judge said NO.  Kohberger was planning to allege that any one of four named alternate suspects, or a combination thereof, in fact committed the murders.  The trouble is all four cooperated fully with the investigation, had reasonable alibis and gave DNA samples for comparison.  Not one of them had any DNA trace at the crime scene where Bryan Kohberger left significant DNA at the scene, as well as a bunch of other forensic evidence.  There was ZERO evidence to implicate any of the alternate suspects.

Kohberger was initially tripped up by a familial DNA match to physical evidence left at the crime scene.  That resulted in a court order to supply a DNA sample which has very likely nailed Kohberger's ass for these murders.  

Kohberger's lawyer can of course go after the thoroughness and scope of the police investigation but can not suggest any of these particular named suspects did the deed absent any actual evidence to support this contention.

The judge has denied any further stalls by the defense.  The case is supposed to go to trial in about five weeks and could result in Kohberger having a date with a firing squad.