Bryan Kohberger’s court-appointed attorney, Greg Rauch, has renewed his effort to have Idaho Judge Steven Hippler removed from the post-conviction case in which Kohberger is seeking to undo his guilty plea in the killings of four University of Idaho students.
In a new 12-page filing, Rauch said Latah County prosecutors’ opposition did not answer the substance of his request. He argued that prosecutors repeated general rules about judicial impartiality, mischaracterized his earlier motion and attributed concessions to Kohberger that he had not made.
Rauch’s challenge concerns Hippler’s statements during Kohberger’s sentencing, as well as the judge’s handling of pretrial scheduling issues. After Kohberger admitted guilt, Hippler used sharply critical language about him and questioned whether he could give a truthful account of his actions. Rauch argues that the comments, viewed alongside the earlier rulings, could lead an informed and reasonable observer to question the judge’s impartiality in deciding later claims.
The attorney says his request is not based on a single adverse ruling or merely on Hippler having presided over the criminal case. In an earlier 22-page motion filed Aug. 27, Rauch described the issue as the combined effect of the judge’s statements and decisions. He has also argued that Hippler could recuse himself voluntarily to avoid an appearance of partiality. Rauch said reassignment would change the judge, not the evidence or the law governing Kohberger’s claims.
Prosecutors have opposed disqualification. In a response filed earlier this month, outgoing Latah County Prosecuting Attorney Bill Thompson and Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Keith Scholl argued that Kohberger had not shown Hippler was biased. They said the sentencing remarks, made after Kohberger admitted killing four students, were not enough to establish perceived bias and maintained that Hippler was positioned to handle the post-conviction proceedings under state law and court rules.
The dispute also reaches back to a June scheduling order. Hippler denied a request by Kohberger’s former defense attorney, Anne Taylor, for more time and described her concerns about discovery as “ultimately empty,” while suggesting they were aimed at delaying the trial. Six days later, at the change-of-plea hearing, Hippler asked Taylor whether she had completed the discovery she considered necessary. Taylor answered that she had.
Kohberger pleaded guilty last year in the November 2022 killings of Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20. The source report says he entered the plea to avoid the death penalty. He is now seeking post-conviction relief, after first submitting a handwritten petition in July. Rauch was subsequently appointed to represent him and has until Jan. 13, 2027, to file an amended petition.
A hearing on the recusal request had been scheduled for Thursday, but Hippler canceled it and said it would be rescheduled. The source report does not give a new hearing date.
