BELOW SUPERNAV drop zone ⇩

Evidence that slain Idaho student fought back, father says

  • Steve Goncalves tells CBS News his daughter tried to ‘get out’
  • Bryan Kohberger has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder
  • A judge is weighing whether cameras will be allowed in court for the trial

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MAIN AREA TOP drop zone ⇩

MOSCOW, Idaho (NewsNation) — The father of one of the murdered University of Idaho students says new evidence shows that his daughter fought back against her attacker, according to multiple reports.

Steve Goncalves, the father of Kaylee Goncalves told CBS News “There’s evidence to show that she awakened and tried to get out of that situation, but she was assaulted and stabbed.”

Kristi Goncalves, Kaylee’s mother, told CBS she believes her daughter wasn’t able to escape because the body of Madison Mogen, her best friend, was blocking the exit.

Goncalves, 21, Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kernodle’s boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20, were all killed in an off-campus house on Nov. 13, 2022.

Washington State University criminology student Bryan Kohberger, 28, was charged last December with four counts of first-degree murder and a felony burglary charge in connection with the killings. He was arrested in Monroe County, Pennsylvania before being extradited to Latah County, Idaho.

Last week, an Idaho judge heard arguments about whether cameras should be allowed to remain in the courtroom for proceedings in Kohberger’s trial.

The hearing at the Latah County Courthouse came after both the defense and prosecution teams asked Judge John Judge to disallow cameras in the courtroom. Witness safety and fears a jury would focus more on the media presence than the case were among the concerns raised.

At Wednesday’s hearing, Kohberger’s defense team said even though the media is doing its job, people on social media still take the images and manipulate them. They’ve argued in previous court filings that media outlets have violated stipulations that camera operators do not focus solely on Kohberger.

“A defendant on trial for a specific crime is entitled to his day in court, not a stadium, or a city or a nationwide arena. … Similarly, Kohberger is entitled to defend himself against capital criminal charges without cameras focused on his fly,” his lawyers wrote.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Idaho College Killings

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed

 

MAIN AREA MIDDLE drop zone ⇩

Trending on NewsNation

MAIN AREA BOTTOM drop zone ⇩

tt

KC Chiefs parade shooting: 1 dead, 21 shot including 9 kids | Morning in America

Witness of Chiefs parade shooting describes suspect | Banfield

Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting: Mom of 2 dead, over 20 shot | Banfield

WWE star Ashley Massaro 'threatened' by board to keep quiet about alleged rape: Friend | Banfield

Friend of WWE star: Ashley Massaro 'spent hours' sobbing after alleged rape | Banfield

Sunny

la

67°F Sunny Feels like 67°
Wind
7 mph SW
Humidity
45%
Sunrise
Sunset

Tonight

Partly cloudy. Low near 50F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.
50°F Partly cloudy. Low near 50F. Winds NNW at 5 to 10 mph.
Wind
6 mph NNW
Precip
10%
Sunset
Moon Phase
Waxing Gibbous