(NewsNation) — The man accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November waived his right to a speedy preliminary hearing on Thursday. A preliminary hearing date was set for June 26 at 9 a.m.
Bryan Kohberger appeared in court in an orange T-shirt, where he waived his right to a speedy preliminary hearing. He appeared fidgety and only spoke when asked direct questions. No bail was set.
Kohberger first appeared before a Latah County, Idaho, judge on Jan. 5 following his extradition from Pennsylvania. He was arrested Dec. 30 after authorities say he traveled to his parents’ home from Pullman, Washington, where he is a graduate student at Washington State University.
The judge in the case has issued a gag order preventing those involved from speaking publicly, though the courtroom is still open to the public.
Criminal defense attorney Tamara Holder told NewsNation gag orders are used to preserve the integrity of the case.
“We have all of these online investigators and people who are really consumed with the case,” she said. “I think the judge is concerned with affecting the jury pool.”
With social media, details won’t just taint the potential jurors in the immediate area, Holder explained. It would also spread to people in other locations, making it more difficult to find impartial jurors.
Police allege Kohberger is the man who killed Kaylee Goncalves, Maddie Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin in the early morning hours of Nov. 13 at an off-campus rental home. Goncalves, Mogen and Kernodle were roommates, and Chapin was dating Kernodle.
All were stabbed to death, and police in a probable cause affidavit said a knife sheath containing Kohberger’s DNA was left at the crime scene. No murder weapon has yet been located.
Jason LaBar, the Kohberger’s public defender in Pennsylvania during the extradition hearings, told NewsNation’s Brian Entin that there are “holes” in the probable cause affidavit that led to his client’s arrest.
Entin held a Twitter Spaces on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET to discuss the status hearing. He was joined by Dave Aronberg, a state attorney in Palm Beach County, Florida.
This story has been updated to correct the date of Kohberger‘s first court appearance in Idaho.
