Idaho killings: University delays demolition of Moscow home

(NewsNation) — The University of Idaho is delaying the demolition of an off-campus home where four students were killed last year, according to local media.

University leaders made the decision Thursday to indefinitely hold off on the destruction the house, the Idaho Statesman reported. It comes after the trial of suspect Bryan Kohberger was postponed.

The university did not set a new demolition date but committed to wait until at least mid-December, university spokesperson Jodi Walker told the Idaho Statesman.

“The King Road house will not come down this semester,” Walker told the newspaper in a phone interview. “We will be moving forward, continuing to prepare for that eventual end.”

No plans have been set for the site after the house comes down.

Kohberger is charged with the deaths of Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, who were found stabbed to death inside the home last November.

Kohberger’s defense attorneys recently waived their right to a speedy trial, which was originally scheduled to begin Oct. 2 in Moscow, Idaho. A new trial date has not yet been set.

A court hearing is scheduled for Sept. 22 to consider a defense motion to dismiss the charges. Prior to that, the court will also hear arguments Sept. 15 about whether to continue to allow cameras in the courtroom for proceedings.

This is the second time the university delayed demolition of the home. In July, officials said they would wait until October to tear down the house.

“We know that every action and decision around this horrific incident is painful and invokes emotions. That is why every decision we have made this far is with the families of the victims and our students in mind,” University President Scott Green said in a statement at the time. “While we look forward to removing this grim reminder of this tragedy, we feel holding until October is the right thing to do.”

Both the defense attorney for Kohberger and the lead prosecutor have given their consent for the house to be demolished.

The plan to bring down the house drew objections earlier this summer.

Shanon Gray, an attorney for the family of Kaylee Goncalves, said the university is disregarding families’ requests that the home be left standing until after the trial of Kohberger.

Gray said in an email to the Idaho Statesman that the university asked for the families’ opinions “and then proceeded to ignore those opinions and pursue their own self-interests. The home itself has enormous evidentiary value as well as being the largest, and one of the most important, pieces of evidence in the case.”