Idaho quadruple murders suspect Bryan Kohberger loses bid to ban cameras in court – but judge issues stern warning urging courtroom spectators to ‘have some restraint’

Idaho quadruple murder suspect Bryan Kohberger has lost his bid to ban cameras in the courtroom, but the judge issued a stern warning that he wanted more control over what is filmed during the proceedings.

Latah County District Court Judge John Judge announced at the start of Friday’s hearing what he expects from the media and courtroom spectators, urging them to “be patient and exercise some dignity and restraint .’

“I’m not going to ban cameras in the courtroom, but I need to have more control over what the cameras do and what media, or people who aren’t media, do with the filming,” he said.

The judge has in the past objected to the way some images and recordings have been used in court.

Both the prosecution and defense have urged the judge to ban cameras.

The move created a conundrum as the court must balance the public’s First Amendment rights with Kohberger’s Sixth Amendment and 14th Amendment rights to due process.

Bryan Kohberger (pictured) enters a courtroom for a hearing in Moscow, Idaho, on October 26, 2023. A judge has declined to dismiss a grand jury indictment against Kohberger, accused of fatally stabbing four University of Applied Sciences students Idaho

Victims: Kaylee Goncalves,21; Madison Mogen, 21 (on Kaylee’s shoulders); Ethan Chapin, 20; and Xana Kernodle, 20, were fatally stabbed in their off-campus home on November 13, 2022

Kohberger’s attorneys have previously argued that cameras could jeopardize the fairness and privacy of the trial.

Prosecutors cited their own concerns about cameras during testimony because of the “young and vulnerable witnesses.”

During the hearing, the judge reiterated what would happen if someone broke the rules, including taking away someone’s laptop or phone.

“Some of your rules have been broken in some of our hearings and I have a duty to put a stop to that,” he insisted.

The judge said he would consider excluding camera coverage of some sensitive witness testimony, as requested by prosecutors.

He also told the photographers at the hearing not to concentrate on table tops where lawyers placed their notes and not to concentrate all the time on the suspect.

No formal order has yet been issued.

In May, Kohberger was indicted and charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in the fatal stabbings of four University of Idaho students: Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan . Chapin, 20, at their home in Moscow, Idaho, in the early hours of November 13 last year.

The court had already issued a restrictive silence order on the case, preventing attorneys for both sides, investigators and even expert witnesses from discussing details outside the public record, Fox News reported.

At a hearing on June 27, the judge said: ‘We do not want a trial in the media or in the public. We want it to be in court.”

But months later he added: “I know I can only control so much, and that’s why I continue to urge people to be patient and show some dignity and some restraint.”

Latah County District Court Judge John Judge said, “I know I can only control so much, and that’s why I continue to urge people to be patient and show some dignity and some restraint.”

Bryan Kohberger listens to arguments during a hearing in Moscow, Idaho, on October 26, 2023, when the judge declined to dismiss a grand jury indictment against him

Last week, Kohberger’s latest bid for freedom was rejected after he failed to have the murder charges thrown out due to what he said were incorrect grand jury instructions.

During the two-part hearing in Latah County Court, Kohberger’s attorneys argued that his charges should be dismissed

The defense sought a preliminary hearing on the evidence — which was privately reviewed in May by an Idaho grand jury, which then sent the case to trial.