Family of one Kohberger victim can’t even make it to plea hearing in time due to short notice

SiriusXM host Megyn Kelly’s guest and legal expert Matt Murphy said Tuesday on her podcast that the family of one of Bryan Kohberger’s victims could potentially succeed in their request to delay the 30-year-old’s plea, after it reportedly came as a surprise to them.

Reports broke Monday that Kohberger accepted a plea deal to all counts in the murders of former University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Kernodle’s boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, in November 2022. While discussing the shocking plea deal on “The Megyn Kelly Show,” as Kohberger’s trial had been scheduled for August, Kelly pointed out how Goncalves’ family came out against the decision.

“It’s pretty shocking, Matt. You spent your whole career as a prosecutor putting away guys like Brian Kohlberger. What do you make of Steve Goncalves’ strong statements against this, saying, ‘We weren’t told. We found out on Friday that they might be talking to him about a plea. The next thing we got was a letter on Sunday with an email attachment saying it was done. We didn’t have meaningful input, and we don’t want this,’” Kelly said.

“It’s very sad, first of all. This should never happen, frankly. You should never have such a disconnect with the family, whether or not you do a plea is a separate issue than the family being informed and being afforded an opportunity to come to court and express their views. This is squarely in what’s known as Marcy’s Law or the Crime Victims Bill of Rights,” Murphy said.

Following the announcement of Kohberger accepting a plea agreement, a Facebook page for the Goncalves family expressed frustration with the decision, saying the state “failed” them.

WATCH:

In a follow-up post, the family said they spoke with the prosecution Friday about a possible plea but said it was “very nonchalant and barely discussed,” with most of the conversation focused on the upcoming trial. They noted their stance had been a “hard no” before receiving an email Sunday that sent them “scrambling” to make phone calls and send emails to push for the death penalty.

“What you see in California, this is actually enshrined in the Constitution, where victims have a right to be heard, and they have a right to be present for all significant proceedings. The reasons they give are good. They’re well-articulated. They explain the appellate process and how that goes on for years, but the disconnect with the family is, it’s a tragic element to this,” Murphy said. “Now, what’s interesting is only the Goncalves family is talking, which makes me think maybe the other families were on board.”

“But it seems like such a short period of time, the turnaround is. I’m really kind of surprised by that — they apparently heard from the defense very recently, within the last couple of days,” Murphy added. “Then they turn this thing around, and the plea is supposed to get out tomorrow. Well, the Goncalves’ family is saying that they can’t even get up there in time. So they’re asking for the court to delay it, which could actually delay it. But I expect that this plea will go through.”

In November 2022, Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle, and Chapin were brutally murdered in an off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho. Kohberger was later arrested in December 2022, with court documents revealing mounting evidence against him, including cellphone data, security footage, and a DNA match to a knife sheath found at the crime scene.

With the trial originally scheduled for Aug. 11 and jury selection set to begin Aug. 4, Kohberger will now face four consecutive life sentences and a maximum penalty of 10 years for burglary, avoiding the death penalty as part of the plea deal.

An attorney for the Goncalves family has formally requested that Kohberger’s plea hearing, scheduled for Wednesday, be delayed to allow the families time to travel to Boise, according to AP News. In another Facebook post, the Goncalves family called out the Latah County Prosecutor’s Office for mishandling the plea deal.

“After more than two years, this is how it concludes with a secretive deal and a hurried effort to close the case without any input from the victims’ families on the plea’s details,” the statement said. “Our family is frustrated right now, and that will subside, and we will come together as always and deal with the reality that we face moving forward.”