Idaho judge unseals transcript of closed-door hearing

ADA COUNTY, Idaho - An Idaho judge has unsealed a 175-page partially redacted transcript of a closed-door hearing in which University of Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger's defense team sought to undermine the credibility of investigative genetic genealogy research that helped police zero in on him in connection with a quadruple homicide.

Ada County Judge Steven Hippler had previously told both the prosecution and defense to propose redactions before releasing the transcript from a Jan. 23 hearing.

Taylor tried to portray the investigative genetic genealogy evidence, or IGG, as improperly left out of the probable cause affidavit used to justify several warrants in the case, including her client's arrest and multiple searches.

But Moscow Police Detective Brett Payne, the leader investigator, testified that the IGG lead was merely a tip and said authorities dug up more evidence that they allege linked Kohberger to the case.

MOSCOW, IDAHO - AUGUST 18: Bryan Kohberger talks to his attorney Anne Taylor before a hearing on August 18, 2023 in Moscow, Idaho. Kohberger is accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022. (Photo by August Frank-Pool/Getty I

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"We made that decision in an effort to independently verify the information that was provided to us as a tip from the FBI, in much the same way we would any other tip in law enforcement," he testified. " So it was not in any way meant to obfuscate any sort of information, it was simply can we validate Mr. Kohberger's involvement in this incident or can we not. That was it."

Redacted information includes the identity of the surviving housemate who witnessed a man with "bushy eyebrows" leaving after she overheard sounds of a struggle, as well as the names of four brothers who were identified as potential relatives of Kohberger during the IGG process. The identities of the brothers and other distant relatives are subject to a prior protective order in the case.

Matthew Gamette, director of the Idaho State Police Forensic Services crime lab, testified that at Othram's urging, an ISP detective reached out to one of those brothers and asked him to submit his DNA to a database that law enforcement would be allowed to search.

The unidentified man at first doubted the detective's identity and later declined to cooperate, telling police not to contact him again. By Dec. 10, 2022, the FBI stepped in. Nine days later, they shared Kohberger's name with Detective Payne.'

Read the transcript here:

Defense expert Dr. Leah Larkin, a genetic genealogist, testified that based on her review of discovery documents, she believes someone at the FBI violated an internal policy and the terms of service of one or more genealogy databases to come up with the lead that led to Kohberger.

"I believe we asked them to turn over the match lists, and they were like, oh, we can't turn over the whole match list because it was 20,000 people," she testified. "And that, actually, right there was a big tip-off because if they had only used GEDMatch PRO and only used FamilyTreeDNA, I think at most they could have gotten to about 10,000. So that right there tipped me off that they were in a database that they should not have been able to be in."

Through further discovery, she said the FBI "admitted to" using MyHeritage and GEDMatch (without the "PRO"), databases law enforcement isn't supposed to search.

The FBI declined to comment and instead pointed to Hippler's Feb. 17 order, which found investigators had not violated Kohberger's constitutional rights with the IGG searches.

Hippler ultimately rejected the defense motion to have IGG evidence tossed, finding nothing the FBI did violated Kohberger's constitutional rights.

During a two-day public proceeding that followed the closed hearing last month, the defense argued that the FBI violated Kohberger's Fourth Amendment protection against unreasonable searches and seizures.

Four University of Idaho students had been stabbed to death in a home on Nov. 13, 2022 – Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.

Under Mogen's body, police found a knife sheath that helped crack the case – it had a DNA sample on it.

Sketch shows Bryan Kohberger in a Monroe County, Pennsylvania courtroom on Jan. 3, 2023. (Handout/William Hennessy, Jr.)

Idaho State Police and Othram Laboratories failed to generate leads from the sample, however, according to Payne.

The FBI then stepped in with its own resources and supplied Kohberger's name as a tip to be investigated on Dec. 19, 2022, Payne testified.

Bryan Kohberger is now in the custody of the Ada County Sheriff's Office, according to online jail records. (Ada County Sheriff's Office)

Eleven days later, police arrested him at his parents' house in Pennsylvania.

On multiple occasions, Taylor attempted to question witnesses about other topics outside the IGG – but Judge Hippler sustained objections from prosecutors, who noted that the hearing was solely dedicated to IGG.

Latah County Judge John Judge entered not guilty pleas on Kohberger's behalf at his arraignment on a superseding indictment in May 2023. Kohberger's lawyers later successfully argued for a change of venue, transferring the case to Ada County under Judge Hippler.

His trial is scheduled to begin in August and is expected to stretch on for weeks. He could face the death penalty if convicted.

This case has seen numerous developments, which are being covered in an ongoing documentary and podcast series, "Bryan Kohberger: Inside the Idaho Murders," available on the FOX LOCAL app and other podcast platforms.