Bryan Kohberger seeks indictment dismissal in Idaho college killings case

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(MOSCOW, Idaho) -- Attorneys for Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of killing four Idaho college students last year, are trying to get his indictment dismissed.

In a new court filing from July 25, but released on Thursday, Kohberger's attorneys are asking the judge to dismiss the indictment on the "grounds that the Grand Jury was misled as to the standard of proof required for an indictment."

Kohberger's lawyers argue the grand jury should have been instructed that the standard of proof based on what was presented to them is "beyond a reasonable doubt." But they were not given that instruction, his lawyers argue.

Instead, the filing claims they were given the standard of proof required for a "Presentment," which the filing claims is having a "reasonable ground for believing that a particular individual … has committed" a certain offense. And because the grand jury was allegedly told they could indict on a lower standard of proof, Kohberger's lawyers want the indictment dismissed.

If the judge won't dismiss the indictment, Kohberger's attorneys are asking for a new preliminary hearing to argue this in front of a magistrate to decide if the case should proceed.

Friday, July 28, 2023 at 6:24AM by Sasha Pezenik and Jolie Lash, ABC News Permalink