The person suspected of carrying out the insanely brutal murders that took place at the University of Idaho could end up looking down the barrel of the death penalty, all based upon a recently discovered filing issued by his legal team.
The public defender assigned to represent the suspect — was slammed with charges related to the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Ethan Chapin, 20; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Madison Mogen, 21– filed a new motion as of late last week in which they asked for the court to another “death qualified” co-counsel in the case.
“The public defender is asking for an additional ‘death qualified’ lawyer to be appointed to the defense team. The motion was granted,” expressed attorney Philip Holloway, while sharing a picture of the motion that was originally filed.
The motion claimed that Koontenai County Public Defender Anne C. Taylor, while taking actions on behalf of the suspect, “moves the Court to appoint an additional death qualified co-counsel in the above entitled matter.”
“This motion is made pursuant to the Fifth, Sixth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the Idaho and United States Constitutions, Rule 44.3 of the Idaho Criminal Rules, IDAPA 61.01.08 et seq., and the American Bar Association Guidelines for the Appointment and Performance of Counsel in Death Penalty Cases,” the filing went on.
A number of experts spotlighted the question of the death penalty early on — Jim Siebe, Idaho criminal defense attorney, noted quite early in January that it would almost certainly be a strong option that could end up being used.
“I would certainly think [the death penalty] would be [requested],” he expressed, adding, “Of course, I can’t speak for [Latah County prosecutor] Bill Thompson,” Siebe went on.
“He’s the one that makes the determination … based on consultation with law enforcement people, with the families [of the victims], [and] some determination as to the personal circumstances of a defendant, where maybe a defendant is subject to a severe mental illness.”
