Idaho Murders Suspect Kohberger Assigned New Public Defender After $8 Million Case Expenses

Ada County District Judge Steven Hippler approved Kohberger’s request Wednesday for court-appointed representation, tasking the Idaho State Public Defender with handling his post-conviction proceedings. The decision arrives shortly after Kohberger filed a handwritten petition seeking to overturn the guilty plea he submitted last year in exchange for prosecutors abandoning capital punishment charges related to the deaths of four University of Idaho students.

In his petition, Kohberger asserts he was “convinced to falsely confess” and contends his three defense attorneys—Anne Taylor, Elisa Massoth and Bicka Barlow—withheld exculpatory evidence referenced in the recent book “Broken Plea” that was never presented during trial. His current filing contradicts earlier statements in which he acknowledged entering the plea knowingly and without coercion.

The case has consumed more than $8 million in taxpayer funds, according to an Idaho Statesman analysis. Defense expenses alone totaled approximately $5.5 million, with Latah County funding nearly $2.8 million before October 2024 and the state covering an additional $2.65 million thereafter.

Kohberger pleaded guilty in July 2025 to murdering Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin in an off-campus Moscow residence on November 13, 2022. He received four consecutive life sentences without parole eligibility. Victim family members, including Kaylee Goncalves’ mother Kristi, have indicated readiness to return to court should his plea withdrawal succeed.