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Bryan Kohberger's family has publicly backed his attempt to withdraw the guilty plea that resulted in four consecutive life sentences for the 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students.
In a statement shared with ABC News on Thursday, Sept. 17, the family said its support for Kohberger's post-conviction challenge was not intended to diminish the suffering of the victims' loved ones.
"Our full support of Bryan's decision to pursue post-conviction relief does not come from a place of disregard. We have no wish to compound the unimaginable grief the families have borne so courageously. Rather, it comes from our family's need to see that the complete and unvarnished truth is told." the family said.
Kohberger, 31, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to killing Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20. The plea agreement removed the possibility of the death penalty, and he was later sentenced to four consecutive life terms.
More than a year after entering the plea, Kohberger filed a handwritten petition seeking to have it withdrawn and to proceed to trial. He alleges that his defense attorneys pressured him into confessing to the killings despite his claim that he is innocent.
His petition also alleges that his attorneys withheld potentially exculpatory evidence, misled him about the consequences of accepting the plea deal and used threats and false promises to persuade him to plead guilty. Kohberger has requested a new judge and for the case to be moved back to Latah County, where the killings occurred.
His family said it wants the legal process to establish what happened. "Like everyone, we seek answers to all the questions that have been raised, which can only be addressed through a proper trial, as opposed to an improper plea," they said.
The family also acknowledged the four victims and their families, saying they continue to hold them "in our hearts and daily prayer" while respecting "the memory of those lost."
Kohberger has maintained that he wants the opportunity to go to trial and contest the case against him. Prosecutors, meanwhile, have filed a motion seeking dismissal of his request for post-conviction relief.
