() A judge has issued a temporary restraining order blocking the release of additional police records in the case against Bryan Kohberger.
Kohberger, a former criminology student, avoided the death penalty by accepting a plea deal and admitting to the 2022 murders of Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin.
A gag order was lifted after Kohberger’s sentencing and hundreds of case files have been released revealing the harrowing scene responding officers found when they got to the house.
The records also detail interviews with surviving roommates, inmates who were housed with Kohberger and someone who claimed to have matched with Kohberger on Tinder.
Temporary restraining order issued
The City of Moscow said Monday that it was served notice Aug. 12 of a petition to the Latah County District Court for a temporary restraining order to prevent the release of additional public records in the case.
Madison Mogen’s mom, Karen Laramie, requested the order after redacted crime scene photos were released last week following public records requests, the city said.
Idaho Second District Judge Marshall reviewed the case and issued the temporary restraining order Friday, blocking the city from releasing any images, audio, or video showing inside Mogen’s bedroom until a hearing on the preliminary injunction is held.
The judge found that “major portions” of what was released did not constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy. But he said portions of videos and photographs in their redacted form, specifically unreleased bodycam video, could be an unwarranted invasion of privacy.
The city said the restraining order only applies to Mogen’s bedroom but that it won’t release photos or videos showing inside any of the victims’ bedrooms until the matter is decided by the court.
Families ‘just want peace’
The attorney who filed the lawsuit against the city on behalf of the families, Leander James, joined “Banfield” to talk about why they had to take legal action.
“They reached the point, by the time of the sentencing, that they actually had some closure and were able to sort of start to move on somehow,” James said.
“Then they get hit with this, all of this ugly stuff getting released.”
Leander said the families find the release of photos showing inside the home an “unwarranted invasion of their privacy,” but that he understands the law might not see it that way.
“That’s what a judge is wrestling with,” he said while asking the public to put themselves’ in the families’ shoes.
James said the families tried to work with the city before suing. He said they want peace, not conflict, and urged everyone to avoid viewing the photos regardless of the outcome of the lawsuit.
‘s Brian Entin contributed to this report.
