House where 4 Idaho students were slain is being demolished despite families' concerns

The house near the University of Idaho campus where four students were stabbed to death over a year ago was being demolished Thursday despite opposition from some family members of the victims.

Ethan Chapin, 20; Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; and Xana Kernodle, 20, were found slain on Nov. 13, 2022. The three women lived in the off-campus rental with two other surviving roommates, and Chapin, Kernodle's boyfriend, was visiting the night of the attack.

The Moscow, Idaho, house was given by the owner to the university earlier this year, and the university announced the house would be demolished in February. It could take multiple days to clear the site after the demolition, the school said.

"The decision to tear down the home during winter break was made as an attempt to decrease further impact on the students who live in that area," the school said in a statement.

The suspect in the killings is 28-year-old Bryan Kohberger, who attended a nearby university and who investigators say they have linked to the crimes through DNA and other evidence. He is charged with four counts of murder.

Victims' families have mixed reactions to demolition

Some family members of the victims have expressed opposition to the decision to demolish the home, saying that it should be preserved until Kohberger's trial is finished.

The Goncalves and Kernodle families said they have asked the prosecution and the university to "stop this madness," arguing that there are several questions about the night of the murders that keeping the house intact could answer, according to a statement on their behalf provided to USA TODAY by attorney Shanon Gray.

The families said the house should stand to address questions of the suspect's and the surviving roommates' vantage points and paths of travel that night.

"If the home is demolished, will all of these questions be able to be answered later on with diagrams/models/technology, etc. ...if they become an issue at trial? If not then leave the home alone!" the statement reads.

Prosecutors told the university they don't believe they will need further evidence from the house, as they have already gathered measurements needed to create illustrative exhibits for a jury. Kohberger's defense team was allowed access to the house earlier this month to take measurements and photos.

“It is the grim reminder of the heinous act that took place there,” University of Idaho President Scott Green said in a statement. “While we appreciate the emotional connection some family members of the victims may have to this house, it is time for its removal and to allow the collective healing of our community to continue.”

Chapin's family told ABC News they support the tearing down of the house: "We’re supportive of the decision to take down the King Street House – for the good of the university, its students (including our own kids), and the community of Moscow."

What's next in the murder trial?

Kohberger, who was a criminology graduate student at a nearby university, was arrested weeks after the stabbings. He is charged with four counts of murder, and a judge entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

Investigators said they linked his DNA with DNA found on a knife sheath left near one of the bodies at the crime scene. They also used cellphone tracking and surveillance footage of Kohberger's car to place him in the area. His attorneys said in previous court filings that he was out driving alone that night and not at the crime scene.

Prosecutors recently proposed summer 2024 dates for Kohberger's murder trial so as not to disrupt local schools with a massive media presence at and around the courthouse. The Goncalves and Kernodle families expressed frustration with the time the process has taken, over a year from the attack.

Prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty if Kohberger is convicted of the murders.

Contributing: The Associated Press