() The murder trial of Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of killing four University of Idaho students in November 2022 as they slept, will begin in August as previously scheduled, a judge ruled Thursday.

Defense attorneys had requested more time to prepare for the case, which has received a large amount of pretrial publicity, including leaks of information to media outlets that they say could be harmful to their client.

Kohberger, a former graduate student in criminal justice, is facing murder charges in the deaths of Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves and Ethan Chapin. The four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death Nov. 13, 2022, in an off-campus house, shocking the small town of Moscow, Idaho, and setting off a search for a suspect.

Kohberger, who attended nearby Washington State University, was arrested a month later, after investigators said they used genetic genealogy to identify him. Prosecutors have since said they have compiled a mountain of evidence against him, such as an online history that includes the purchase of the type of knife believed to have been used in the stabbings.

In his written decision Thursday, Judge Steven Hippler questioned whether pretrial publicity would ever fade, given the public’s interest in the case.

“The murders occurred over two and one-half years ago. The circumstances of the murders were provocative four college students in a small Idaho college town were brutally stabbed to death by an unknown perpetrator. It was an immediate media sensation and garnered widespread attention that not only continues to persist, but continues to grow,” the judge wrote.

A previous judge in the case last year granted a defense motion to move the trial from Latah County, citing pretrial publicity and other reasons.

With Hippler’s decision, jury selection is set to begin Aug. 4 in Boise, with opening statements expected to take place Aug. 18, according to court records.

In a separate ruling, Hippler denied a defense request to present “alternate perpetrators” to jurors.