WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.120 --> 00:00:02.960 What's up everyone, and welcome back to the program. In 2 00:00:03.000 --> 00:00:04.799 this episode, we're going to pick up where we left 3 00:00:04.839 --> 00:00:09.320 off with a comprehensive review of the Moscow murders. In 4 00:00:09.400 --> 00:00:14.320 the courtroom, evidence doesn't just prove, it narrates. Every piece 5 00:00:14.320 --> 00:00:19.320 tells a story, a timeline of movements, intent, presence, And 6 00:00:19.359 --> 00:00:22.600 when prosecutors laid out their case against Brian Colberger, they 7 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:25.440 weren't just arguing that he was guilty. They were reconstructing 8 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:29.239 a path from Pullman to Moscow, from theory to action, 9 00:00:29.640 --> 00:00:34.399 from sheath to cell tower, from planning to blood. On 10 00:00:34.520 --> 00:00:37.799 January fifth, twenty twenty three, the probable cause affid David 11 00:00:37.799 --> 00:00:39.799 in the case of the State of Idaho versus Brian 12 00:00:39.840 --> 00:00:43.359 Colberger was unsealed. Within it lay at the scaffolding of 13 00:00:43.399 --> 00:00:47.240 the state's theory that Brian Colberger, acting alone, entered the 14 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:50.719 eleven twenty two King rode home on November thirteenth, twenty 15 00:00:50.759 --> 00:00:53.920 twenty two, between four and four twenty a m and 16 00:00:54.039 --> 00:00:57.280 stabbed four University of Idaho's students to death with a 17 00:00:57.320 --> 00:01:01.079 fixed blade knife. The case, those are substantial in nature, 18 00:01:01.439 --> 00:01:04.400 is not without weight. The prosecution has built its foundation 19 00:01:04.519 --> 00:01:07.920 on six pillars of forensic and digital evidence. Each one 20 00:01:08.079 --> 00:01:12.719 doesn't just point to Coburger. They overlap, reinforce, and synchronize. 21 00:01:13.400 --> 00:01:17.000 Let's examine them one by one. The knife sheath and DNA. 22 00:01:17.959 --> 00:01:21.760 This is the prosecution's forensic cornerstone. During the initial crime 23 00:01:21.799 --> 00:01:25.760 scene sweep, investigators recovered a tan leather knife sheath next 24 00:01:25.799 --> 00:01:29.159 to Madison Mogan's body. The sheath was identified as a 25 00:01:29.200 --> 00:01:32.200 k bar combat style sheath bearing the insignia of the 26 00:01:32.280 --> 00:01:35.799 United States Marine Corps on the button stap of the sheath. 27 00:01:35.920 --> 00:01:39.319 Analysts found a single source of male DNA that DNA 28 00:01:39.400 --> 00:01:43.760 did not match anyone in Cotis. This left investigators with 29 00:01:43.799 --> 00:01:47.400 two choices, wait for a suspect or create one. When 30 00:01:47.439 --> 00:01:50.519 Brian Coburger was identified as a person of interest through 31 00:01:50.560 --> 00:01:53.760 the vehicle tracking and cell phone data which we'll get to, 32 00:01:54.120 --> 00:01:58.400 agents recovered trash from his family's residence in all Brightville, Pennsylvania, 33 00:01:58.680 --> 00:02:02.000 where he was staying over the holiday. Inside the trash 34 00:02:02.040 --> 00:02:06.840 a discarded item with his father's DNA. The familial DNA 35 00:02:07.040 --> 00:02:09.759 was then used to triangulate the profile recovered from the 36 00:02:09.800 --> 00:02:14.319 knife sheath. According to FBI forensic reports, at least ninety 37 00:02:14.400 --> 00:02:17.199 nine point nine nine nine eight percent of the male 38 00:02:17.280 --> 00:02:21.800 population would be excluded as the biological contributor. The defense 39 00:02:21.840 --> 00:02:27.039 will likely challenge this as touched DNA, easily transferable, potentially contaminated, 40 00:02:27.280 --> 00:02:30.439 but the state's position is that its direct contact DNA 41 00:02:30.680 --> 00:02:33.960 deposited during the act of the crime. It is, as 42 00:02:34.000 --> 00:02:37.599 of now, the only known physical forensic link tying Coburger 43 00:02:37.639 --> 00:02:41.960 to the interior of the house. Two cell phone tower data. 44 00:02:42.520 --> 00:02:45.719 Coburger's cell phone didn't betray him directly. It betrayed him 45 00:02:45.719 --> 00:02:49.159 by going silent. Investigators obtained a search warrant for his 46 00:02:49.199 --> 00:02:52.840 cell phone records, and what they found painted a chilling picture. 47 00:02:53.240 --> 00:02:56.080 On the night of the murders, Coburger's phone pinged on 48 00:02:56.120 --> 00:02:59.479 a WSU tower at two forty two am. From two 49 00:02:59.560 --> 00:03:02.039 forty six seven am to four forty eight am, the 50 00:03:02.080 --> 00:03:05.879 phone went completely dark, no pings, no app activity, no 51 00:03:06.000 --> 00:03:10.599 Wi Fi usage. This blackout period precisely matches the suspected 52 00:03:10.639 --> 00:03:14.039 time of the murders. Then, just before five AM, his 53 00:03:14.199 --> 00:03:18.120 phone reactivated and ping near Blaine, Idaho, on the route 54 00:03:18.360 --> 00:03:22.120 away from Moscow. But it gets worse. Records show that 55 00:03:22.159 --> 00:03:25.199 Coberger's phone had pinged in the area of eleven twenty 56 00:03:25.199 --> 00:03:28.680 two King Road on at least twelve prior occasions, beginning 57 00:03:28.680 --> 00:03:31.759 in August of twenty twenty two. The visits all occurred 58 00:03:31.840 --> 00:03:36.599 late at night or early in the morning. Prosecutors interpret 59 00:03:36.680 --> 00:03:40.400 this as pre attack surveillance evidence of stalking behavior and 60 00:03:40.479 --> 00:03:44.120 familiarizing himself with the route. Defense may argue he was 61 00:03:44.159 --> 00:03:47.400 a grad student who commuted frequently and the pings don't 62 00:03:47.639 --> 00:03:51.199 prove presence, but the totality twelve visits no friends in 63 00:03:51.240 --> 00:03:54.159 the house late night times followed by a murdered day 64 00:03:54.159 --> 00:04:00.240 blackout is compelling. Three vehicle surveillance the white Alantra the 65 00:04:00.319 --> 00:04:03.759 white twenty fifteen Hondai Lantra was never a random tip. 66 00:04:03.879 --> 00:04:07.280 It was a turning point of the investigation. Between three 67 00:04:07.360 --> 00:04:10.240 twenty nine and four to twenty am on November thirteenth, 68 00:04:10.360 --> 00:04:13.280 multiple security and traffic cameras in the King Road neighborhood 69 00:04:13.479 --> 00:04:17.079 recorded a white sedan making repeated passes near the house. 70 00:04:18.000 --> 00:04:20.399 At one point, the car executed a three point turn 71 00:04:20.639 --> 00:04:23.279 in the middle of the street, odd behavior. At that hour, 72 00:04:23.959 --> 00:04:27.319 surveillance cameras caught the car driving east on King Road, 73 00:04:27.560 --> 00:04:30.759 circling the block, returning four times to the vicinity of 74 00:04:30.800 --> 00:04:34.120 eleven twenty two King Road, exiting at high speed at 75 00:04:34.160 --> 00:04:37.240 four twenty a m. The car was eventually traced back 76 00:04:37.240 --> 00:04:40.800 to Coburger through a series of meticulous data matches. His 77 00:04:40.959 --> 00:04:45.759 registration showed a white twenty fifteen Hondaia Lantra. The car 78 00:04:45.800 --> 00:04:49.000 had no front license plate, which matched security footage. A 79 00:04:49.079 --> 00:04:52.079 traffic stop in August had photographed the car and confirmed 80 00:04:52.120 --> 00:04:56.839 Coburger's appearance, including bushy eyebrows at detail. One surviving roommate 81 00:04:56.920 --> 00:04:59.839 recalled seeing on the masked man who left the scene. 82 00:05:00.759 --> 00:05:04.279 In addition, coburgers registered his car in Washington State on 83 00:05:04.360 --> 00:05:08.360 November eighteenth, five days after the murders, raising eyebrows about 84 00:05:08.360 --> 00:05:11.319 whether he was trying to reduce scrutiny from the Idaho 85 00:05:11.360 --> 00:05:16.959 Bolo for surveillance behavior and post crime movements. After the murders, 86 00:05:17.000 --> 00:05:20.839 Coberger's behavior became its own piece of evidence. Surveillance teams 87 00:05:20.879 --> 00:05:24.839 tracked him extensively through interior cleaning of his vehicle, including 88 00:05:24.879 --> 00:05:28.639 removal of the floor mats and seat covers, wearing latex 89 00:05:28.680 --> 00:05:32.240 gloves while grocery shopping, disposing of trash at odd hours, 90 00:05:32.240 --> 00:05:35.480 and neighboring bins. Returning to the crime scene area on 91 00:05:35.519 --> 00:05:38.240 the morning after the murders at nine twelve a m. 92 00:05:38.600 --> 00:05:42.879 According to cell phone pings. Psychologically, this fits a known 93 00:05:42.920 --> 00:05:46.360 pattern a fender returns to the scene to relive the act, 94 00:05:46.639 --> 00:05:51.519 gauge investigation progress, or confirm their success. It also undermines 95 00:05:51.560 --> 00:05:57.040 any argument of coincidence. Five. Behavioral profile and academic obsession. 96 00:05:58.000 --> 00:06:02.439 Coburger's academic background and just contextualize the crime it potentially 97 00:06:02.480 --> 00:06:06.199 informed it. He was a PhD candidate in criminology, studying 98 00:06:06.279 --> 00:06:11.079 offender behavior, decision making, and compulsive crime. He had conducted 99 00:06:11.079 --> 00:06:15.720 and now notorious Reddit survey asking participants about their thoughts, emotions, 100 00:06:15.759 --> 00:06:20.360 and choices while committing crimes. He studied under doctor Catherine Ramsland, 101 00:06:20.519 --> 00:06:25.800 an expert on serial killers, including BTK. Prosecutors are likely 102 00:06:25.879 --> 00:06:29.000 to argue that Coberger didn't just plan this crime, he 103 00:06:29.040 --> 00:06:33.199 built it. Like his thesis project. His movements, preparation and 104 00:06:33.319 --> 00:06:39.879 silence afterwards show premeditation and intellectual detachment. Number six, the 105 00:06:39.959 --> 00:06:43.279 surviving witness account. The most chilling human element in the 106 00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:46.959 affid David comes from the surviving roommate. Her statement forms 107 00:06:46.959 --> 00:06:50.639 the only visual identification of the alleged killer. According to her, 108 00:06:50.839 --> 00:06:53.800 around four am, she was awoken by what sounded like 109 00:06:53.920 --> 00:06:57.199 crying and a loud thud. She opened the door and 110 00:06:57.240 --> 00:06:59.720 saw a masked man dressed in black walking toward her 111 00:06:59.839 --> 00:07:03.519 and then out the sliding glass door. She described a 112 00:07:03.560 --> 00:07:07.000 man as tall and athletically built, wearing a mask over 113 00:07:07.040 --> 00:07:11.199 his nose and mouth, with bushy eyebrows. She locked her 114 00:07:11.199 --> 00:07:14.519 door and did not call nine one one. That detail 115 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:18.199 has been controversial, but it aligns with trauma response theory 116 00:07:18.439 --> 00:07:22.399 fight flight or freeze. Her observation, paired with the car 117 00:07:22.439 --> 00:07:26.199 phone and DNA evidence, creates a multi modal timeline. It 118 00:07:26.279 --> 00:07:30.480 also introduces eyewitness risk no full face partial memory, fear 119 00:07:30.560 --> 00:07:34.480 fueled interpretation, but the detail about the eyebrows, later echoed 120 00:07:34.639 --> 00:07:38.720 by the August body camera footage of Cohburger adds credibility 121 00:07:39.639 --> 00:07:44.879 search warrant executions the apartment and vehicle. When Cohburger was arrested, 122 00:07:44.959 --> 00:07:47.920 his apartment and pullman and his HONDEI Lantro were searched 123 00:07:48.360 --> 00:07:51.800 from his apartment. Police recovered black loves, a shop back 124 00:07:51.879 --> 00:07:55.720 with trace red stains, a laptop, and multiple data storage devices, 125 00:07:56.079 --> 00:08:00.920 receipts from old stores showing cleaning supplies, poss hair strands 126 00:08:01.759 --> 00:08:05.600 from his car seat, belt buckle swabs, trunk carpet fibers, 127 00:08:05.720 --> 00:08:09.079 gas pedal and brake swabs, stains in debris from floor mats. 128 00:08:09.360 --> 00:08:12.079 We still haven't received word on many of the materials, 129 00:08:12.319 --> 00:08:15.279 but they form the basis for a lot of discovery requests, 130 00:08:16.000 --> 00:08:19.639 legal week spots. In defense strategy, the evidence, while extensive, 131 00:08:19.879 --> 00:08:22.959 is in bulletproof and here's where the defense will likely 132 00:08:23.000 --> 00:08:26.519 focus touch DNA. The defense will argue that dNaM the 133 00:08:26.600 --> 00:08:30.319 knife sheath could be transferred, not deposited through direct contact. 134 00:08:30.759 --> 00:08:35.039 No murder weapon. The actual knife was never recovered. Cell 135 00:08:35.120 --> 00:08:39.279 tower in precision pings aren't GPS. They show general areas, 136 00:08:39.320 --> 00:08:43.480 not precise location. No video of entry or exit. No 137 00:08:43.600 --> 00:08:46.240 security cam caught them at the door or inside the home. 138 00:08:46.720 --> 00:08:49.799 Lack of motive. There is still no confirmed link between 139 00:08:49.879 --> 00:08:53.440 Coburger and the victims. No text messages, no social media 140 00:08:53.440 --> 00:08:59.519 interactions or non visual contact. Behavior is not proof. Strange 141 00:08:59.519 --> 00:09:02.759 behavior is in guilt, wearing gloves in public, driving at night, 142 00:09:03.039 --> 00:09:06.639 or being solitary or not crimes. The defense will try 143 00:09:06.639 --> 00:09:10.120 to reframe the case as confirmation bias, a suspect who 144 00:09:10.120 --> 00:09:14.080 fit too well, causing investigators to build backward from an assumption. 145 00:09:15.200 --> 00:09:18.399 The prosecution will argue the opposite, that the entire digital, 146 00:09:18.440 --> 00:09:22.200 behavioral and forensic record was pointing at him before they 147 00:09:22.240 --> 00:09:25.080 even knew his name. The case against Brian Colberger is 148 00:09:25.080 --> 00:09:27.679 not built on a single smoking gun. It's built like 149 00:09:27.720 --> 00:09:32.120 a rope braided strands of surveillance, forensics, behavior, and absence. 150 00:09:32.679 --> 00:09:36.240 Any one thread might be frayed, but the collective it holds. 151 00:09:36.759 --> 00:09:40.600 What remains now is to test that rope an open court. 152 00:09:41.279 --> 00:09:44.559 The defense strategy and legal battlefield ahead in the court room. 153 00:09:44.639 --> 00:09:47.120 Guilt is not about what you know, It's about what 154 00:09:47.240 --> 00:09:50.679 you can prove, and for Brian Colberger's defense team, the 155 00:09:50.720 --> 00:09:54.279 fight isn't about clearing his name through innocence. It's about 156 00:09:54.360 --> 00:09:57.919 challenging every inch of evidence the state will try to present. 157 00:09:58.559 --> 00:10:01.879 In this battle. The blade is procedural, the weapon is 158 00:10:01.960 --> 00:10:05.559 reasonable doubt, and the arena is a death penalty case 159 00:10:05.720 --> 00:10:10.879 that will define modern criminal litigation in America. On January fifth, 160 00:10:10.960 --> 00:10:14.000 twenty twenty three, Brian Coberger stood in the Layta County 161 00:10:14.000 --> 00:10:17.879 court room for his first public appearance in Idaho. Shackled, 162 00:10:18.159 --> 00:10:21.360 silent and blank faced, he listened as the judge read 163 00:10:21.399 --> 00:10:24.399 four charges of first degree murder and one count of 164 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:27.679 felony burglary. He did not speak, except to acknowledge that 165 00:10:27.720 --> 00:10:31.279 he understood the charges. What followed was the early movement 166 00:10:31.320 --> 00:10:34.399 of a slow, methodical war between the state of Idaho, 167 00:10:34.519 --> 00:10:38.240 backed by federal resources and public outrage, and a defense 168 00:10:38.279 --> 00:10:41.759 team led by capitol qualified attorney and Taylor, one of 169 00:10:41.799 --> 00:10:45.879 the most experienced public defenders in the state. This would 170 00:10:45.919 --> 00:10:48.399 not be a fast trial and it would not be 171 00:10:48.440 --> 00:10:51.159 a clean one. With the state sitting on a mountain 172 00:10:51.159 --> 00:10:54.559 of circumstantial evidence but no murder weapon, no confirm motive, 173 00:10:54.759 --> 00:10:57.799 and no video footage inside the house, the defense path 174 00:10:57.960 --> 00:11:01.559 was clear, not to disprove the c TME, but to 175 00:11:01.639 --> 00:11:04.840 dismantle the narrative. All right, we're going to wrap up 176 00:11:04.879 --> 00:11:06.720 right here, and in the next episode, we're going to 177 00:11:06.799 --> 00:11:09.559 pick up where we left off. All of the information 178 00:11:09.639 --> 00:11:12.240 that goes with this episode can be found in the 179 00:11:12.279 --> 00:11:15.799 description box. What's up, everyone, and welcome back to the program. 180 00:11:16.120 --> 00:11:18.679 In this episode, we're picking up with our exhaustive look 181 00:11:19.159 --> 00:11:23.360 at the murders in Moscow and then the investigation into 182 00:11:23.399 --> 00:11:27.960 Brian Colberger who is Anne Taylor and c Taylor is 183 00:11:28.039 --> 00:11:31.360 not a courtroom novice, as the chief of the Cootney 184 00:11:31.399 --> 00:11:35.360 County Public Defender's Office. She's handled numerous murder cases and 185 00:11:35.399 --> 00:11:39.360 desertified to defend clients in capital trials. She took over 186 00:11:39.440 --> 00:11:43.240 Coburger's case within hours of his extradition to Idaho, immediately 187 00:11:43.240 --> 00:11:46.799 stepping down from representing the Gonsalves family in a separate matter, 188 00:11:47.120 --> 00:11:51.240 sparking minor ethical controversy that was later resolved, But her 189 00:11:51.279 --> 00:11:55.000 appointment signaled something bigger. The state is preparing for a 190 00:11:55.039 --> 00:11:58.480 death penalty case, and Taylor is building her defense accordingly. 191 00:11:59.200 --> 00:12:02.840 Her strategy, based on court filings and procedural maneuvers, is 192 00:12:02.840 --> 00:12:07.240 emerging in four parts. Evidentary suppression, contamination and chain of 193 00:12:07.279 --> 00:12:13.679 custody arguments, alternative suspect theories, and narrative inversion through reasonable doubt. 194 00:12:14.120 --> 00:12:17.679 Let's start with suppression of DNA evidence. The single source 195 00:12:17.720 --> 00:12:20.279 mal DNA found on the knife sheath is the centerpiece 196 00:12:20.320 --> 00:12:24.000 of the prosecution's case. If it stays in Coburger's defense 197 00:12:24.039 --> 00:12:27.320 has a major hill decline. If it's suppressed, the case 198 00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:32.159 could collapse. Taylor's filings have already indicated plans to challenge 199 00:12:32.200 --> 00:12:37.200 the validity of the FBI's genetic genealogy process, specifically the 200 00:12:37.240 --> 00:12:40.080 method used to build the familial match between the trash 201 00:12:40.200 --> 00:12:44.679 DNA and the sheath, the use of private genealogical databases, 202 00:12:44.720 --> 00:12:47.519 which may fall into legal gray areas if law enforcement 203 00:12:47.799 --> 00:12:51.559 acts as data without consent or court order. The question 204 00:12:51.600 --> 00:12:56.240 of whether the FBI's identification process violated Coburger's Fourth Amendment rights. 205 00:12:56.759 --> 00:12:59.480 This strategy is rooted in growing legal tension. When law 206 00:12:59.519 --> 00:13:04.080 enforcement uses private ancestry data to create investigative leads without 207 00:13:04.120 --> 00:13:08.399 judicial oversight, does it constitute a search? According to Judge Hippler, 208 00:13:08.639 --> 00:13:11.039 it did not, But if a judge ruled that the 209 00:13:11.120 --> 00:13:14.159 process used to match Colberger's father's DNA to the sheath 210 00:13:14.480 --> 00:13:18.879 was overly invasive or lacks efficient judicial authorization, that could 211 00:13:18.879 --> 00:13:21.120 have led to the key forensic link being thrown out. 212 00:13:21.639 --> 00:13:25.360 Two attacking the chain of custody. Defense filings also suggest 213 00:13:25.440 --> 00:13:29.320 Taylor intends to raise alarms about evidence contamination and chain 214 00:13:29.360 --> 00:13:32.559 of custody breaks. The knife sheath was discovered at the 215 00:13:32.600 --> 00:13:36.039 crime scene after multiple civilians had entered the home before police. 216 00:13:36.480 --> 00:13:39.720 The surviving roommates call friends to the house, creating early 217 00:13:39.840 --> 00:13:43.159 uncontrolled access. There's no evidence that the knife sheath was 218 00:13:43.200 --> 00:13:47.159 bagged and sealed immediately upon discovery. No mention of blood 219 00:13:47.240 --> 00:13:50.639 or prints on the sheath, raising the possibility of secondary transfer. 220 00:13:51.559 --> 00:13:54.919 Taylor will argue that in a crime scene as contaminated 221 00:13:54.960 --> 00:13:58.600 as this one, with first responders not suspecting murder, when 222 00:13:58.679 --> 00:14:01.799 entering the idea that col Burger's DNA couldn't have been 223 00:14:01.840 --> 00:14:06.639 transferred indirectly as scientifically invalid. She'll bring in forensic experts 224 00:14:06.679 --> 00:14:10.559 to explain touch DNA transfer possibilities, from door handles to 225 00:14:10.639 --> 00:14:15.480 shared surfaces to airborne particulate transfer. And if she convinces 226 00:14:15.519 --> 00:14:18.360 the jury that reasonable doubt exists about how the DNA 227 00:14:18.440 --> 00:14:22.120 got there, even the prosecution's strongest evidence becomes a maybe 228 00:14:23.080 --> 00:14:26.639 three creating the shadow of another suspect. It's one of 229 00:14:26.639 --> 00:14:29.000 the oldest plays in the defense book point to a 230 00:14:29.039 --> 00:14:32.320 missing suspect even if you can't name them. Taylor doesn't 231 00:14:32.360 --> 00:14:34.720 need to prove someone else committed the murders. She only 232 00:14:34.759 --> 00:14:38.200 needs to introduce the possibility. No murder weapon has been found, 233 00:14:38.440 --> 00:14:41.639 no security camera caught Coburger entering or exiting the house, 234 00:14:42.120 --> 00:14:45.200 no witness places him inside. Besides a witness who didn't 235 00:14:45.200 --> 00:14:48.000 see his face, there are hundreds of white launtras in 236 00:14:48.039 --> 00:14:51.480 the region. There's no confirm motive. The roommates were left alive. 237 00:14:51.840 --> 00:14:55.919 Why what does that mean about intent? Expect Taylor to 238 00:14:56.039 --> 00:14:59.159 lean on these gaps. She may argue that Coburger was 239 00:14:59.159 --> 00:15:02.679 a convenient suspec effect, that law enforcement was under public pressure, 240 00:15:02.919 --> 00:15:05.919 and that they reverse engineered their narrative based on what fit. 241 00:15:06.519 --> 00:15:08.840 She may suggest someone else knew the victims, that the 242 00:15:08.919 --> 00:15:11.840 killings were personal, and that there is more than one killer. 243 00:15:12.399 --> 00:15:16.159 And even without proof, the suggestion creates oxygen for doubt, 244 00:15:17.039 --> 00:15:20.519 destroying the timeline through reasonable doubt. At the corra, tailor's 245 00:15:20.519 --> 00:15:24.519 strategy is undermining the state's timeline. The prosecution's version is 246 00:15:24.519 --> 00:15:28.759 tightly constructed. Colburger's car enters the area, his phone goes dark, 247 00:15:29.080 --> 00:15:31.720 he commits the murders, his car flees a scene. He 248 00:15:31.840 --> 00:15:36.120 returns hours later, but timelines are fragile. Taylor will argue 249 00:15:36.120 --> 00:15:39.399 that cell tower pings or not GPS, camera timestamps can 250 00:15:39.480 --> 00:15:42.919 be off by seconds or minutes, car matches aren't precise, 251 00:15:43.399 --> 00:15:46.480 his phone going dark is not illegal. She may present 252 00:15:46.559 --> 00:15:49.879 experts who challenge whether the gaps in Colburger's digital footprint 253 00:15:50.159 --> 00:15:53.240 actually place them at the house. Or merely in the proximity. 254 00:15:53.879 --> 00:15:57.000 If she succeeds in muddying the timeline, the precision of 255 00:15:57.039 --> 00:16:01.120 the state's narrative dissolves, and with it, the illusion of certainty. 256 00:16:01.919 --> 00:16:04.840 In June of twenty twenty three, the Leytau County Prosecutor's 257 00:16:04.879 --> 00:16:07.279 Office filed its notice of intent to seek the death 258 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:11.240 penalty that raised the bar for both sides. To secure death, 259 00:16:11.320 --> 00:16:15.399 the prosecution must prove aggravating factors such as multiple victims 260 00:16:15.480 --> 00:16:19.480 or heinous cruel conduct, that Coburger poses a continuing threat, 261 00:16:19.879 --> 00:16:23.759 that the crime shows utter disregard for human life. For 262 00:16:23.840 --> 00:16:28.039 the defense, this introduces a second trial phase, penalty mitigation. 263 00:16:28.559 --> 00:16:32.679 If convicted, Taylor will shift to humanizing Coburger, presenting mental 264 00:16:32.720 --> 00:16:37.399 health history, family trauma, neurological evaluations, and lack of prior 265 00:16:37.480 --> 00:16:41.159 criminal behavior. The second phase becomes life or death battle 266 00:16:41.440 --> 00:16:45.440 over whether Coburger is executed or sentenced to life without parole. 267 00:16:46.200 --> 00:16:49.000 But Taylor's true objective is to prevent that phase entirely 268 00:16:49.440 --> 00:16:52.600 by securing an acquittal or a mistrial through evidence suppression 269 00:16:52.960 --> 00:16:58.200 and narrative fracture. Jury selection the next battlefield. This case 270 00:16:58.240 --> 00:17:01.360 cannot be tried like a typical murder. True, considering we've 271 00:17:01.399 --> 00:17:04.759 already had a change of venue, look for jurors being 272 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:09.720 sequestered an individual Vordyre, allowing deep psychological vetting of each 273 00:17:09.839 --> 00:17:14.400 jur for bias, social media exposure, or preconceptions about criminology. 274 00:17:15.400 --> 00:17:18.000 Because of the highly publicized nature of the case, each 275 00:17:18.039 --> 00:17:21.400 potential jur will be evaluated not just for fairness, but 276 00:17:21.480 --> 00:17:25.440 for emotional resistance to horror. The case isn't just about facts. 277 00:17:25.759 --> 00:17:29.319 It's about whether twelve people can sit through photos, testimony, 278 00:17:29.519 --> 00:17:34.480 and silence and still decide based on law, not outrage. Legally, 279 00:17:34.519 --> 00:17:37.440 the prosecution carries the full burden. They must prove that 280 00:17:37.559 --> 00:17:40.440 Coburger entered the home, that he murdered the victims, that 281 00:17:40.480 --> 00:17:44.279 he did so with premeditation. The defense must prove nothing. 282 00:17:44.480 --> 00:17:46.960 Their job is to erode in the court room. It 283 00:17:47.000 --> 00:17:50.799 will be expert versus expert on DNA, analysts versus analysts 284 00:17:50.839 --> 00:17:55.119 on phone data, human emotion verse procedural logic. This will 285 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:58.519 be a war of credibility, clarity, and stamina, one that 286 00:17:58.559 --> 00:18:02.880 has already lasted years. Sometimes the loudest thing in a 287 00:18:02.920 --> 00:18:07.119 court room is in testimony. It's silence. Brian Colberger isn't talking, 288 00:18:07.359 --> 00:18:11.240 His attorneys aren't talking. The judges silenced, the police, the prosecution, 289 00:18:11.559 --> 00:18:15.279 the victims' families, and even the witnesses. And in that silence, 290 00:18:15.279 --> 00:18:19.799 a different kind of noise has taken over tiktoks, YouTube psychics, 291 00:18:19.960 --> 00:18:23.720 reddit threads, conspiracy charts, and digital hunger to be first, 292 00:18:23.759 --> 00:18:26.680 not right. In the absence of speech, the court of 293 00:18:26.680 --> 00:18:30.079 public opinion has become the loudest court room in the country. 294 00:18:30.799 --> 00:18:34.079 The silence Brian Colberger has never made a public statement 295 00:18:34.119 --> 00:18:36.359 about the murders. Not at the time of his arrest, 296 00:18:36.720 --> 00:18:40.519 not during his extradition from Pennsylvania to Idaho, not during 297 00:18:40.519 --> 00:18:43.720 his first court appearance, not after his indictment, not after 298 00:18:43.759 --> 00:18:47.160 the prosecution announced its intent to seek the death penalty. 299 00:18:47.599 --> 00:18:49.640 When asked by the judge if he wanted to enter 300 00:18:49.680 --> 00:18:52.599 a plea at his arraignment, Coburger replied with a blank stare. 301 00:18:53.000 --> 00:18:56.359 His attorney then invoked not guilty on his behalf. That 302 00:18:56.519 --> 00:19:01.200 silence isn't accidental. It's a calculated legal strategy. Every word 303 00:19:01.200 --> 00:19:04.160 that a defendant says before trial is a potential weapon 304 00:19:04.200 --> 00:19:06.920 against them, especially in a case where the evidence is 305 00:19:06.960 --> 00:19:10.400 circumstantial and the legal path to conviction runs through a 306 00:19:10.440 --> 00:19:14.960 reasonable doubt. Coburger's silence is part of legal insulation, part 307 00:19:15.079 --> 00:19:18.880 psychological war. He knows the world wants to hear from him, 308 00:19:18.960 --> 00:19:23.400 he refuses. That refusal has created a vacuum, and vacuums 309 00:19:23.440 --> 00:19:28.039 don't stay empty for long. On January third, twenty twenty three, 310 00:19:28.559 --> 00:19:32.119 Leyta County Magistrate Judge Megan Marshall issued a sweeping non 311 00:19:32.160 --> 00:19:35.960 dissemination order, what most people call a gag order. It 312 00:19:36.039 --> 00:19:40.680 barred all attorneys, law enforcement agencies, investigators, victims, families, and 313 00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:44.759 witnesses from making public statements about the case. The stated 314 00:19:44.799 --> 00:19:48.039 purpose to preserve Coburger's right to a fair trial and 315 00:19:48.119 --> 00:19:52.319 prevent prejudicial pre trial publicity, but it came with a cost. 316 00:19:52.839 --> 00:19:57.079 In shutting down official communication, the court also handcuffed the truth. 317 00:19:57.559 --> 00:20:00.200 When people search for updates, they didn't get AFID, davidkids, 318 00:20:00.279 --> 00:20:04.319 or court records. They got clickbait live streams, amateur theories, 319 00:20:04.480 --> 00:20:09.119 and unhinged speculation. Even the victims' families were silenced. Kay 320 00:20:09.279 --> 00:20:13.640 Gonsovas's father, Steve Gonsalves, publicly criticized the gag order. I'm 321 00:20:13.640 --> 00:20:16.480 not going to be quiet. My tatter's gone. You don't 322 00:20:16.480 --> 00:20:19.160 get to tell me how to mourn her, but the 323 00:20:19.200 --> 00:20:23.319 gag order stood, and into that information void came the crowd. 324 00:20:23.640 --> 00:20:26.880 Within forty eight hours of Coburger's arrest, Reddit threads began 325 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:30.319 to map his alleged rought, examine his appearance, dissect as 326 00:20:30.359 --> 00:20:33.799 college papers, and even analyze his body language in court. 327 00:20:34.440 --> 00:20:37.960 TikTok videos flooded with creators acting out scenes from the crime. 328 00:20:38.279 --> 00:20:41.880 Some posed as the victims, speculating how they died. Others 329 00:20:41.880 --> 00:20:47.240 played Coburger narrating imagined monologues from his perspective. YouTube live 330 00:20:47.240 --> 00:20:51.079 streamers built entire channels around daily updates on the case, 331 00:20:51.319 --> 00:20:54.240 often with zero access to real evidence. Some of the 332 00:20:54.279 --> 00:20:58.359 most egregious examples included fake psychic readings claiming to channel 333 00:20:58.359 --> 00:21:03.359 the victims, baseless accusations against surviving roommates, claims that Coburger 334 00:21:03.440 --> 00:21:06.319 was framed by the FBI, and women falling in love 335 00:21:06.359 --> 00:21:09.000 with Coburger like he was Ted Bundy, treating this like 336 00:21:09.079 --> 00:21:13.359 a Netflix drama instead of a murder case. The Gonsalvis 337 00:21:13.359 --> 00:21:16.680 and Mogan families repeatedly ask people to stop spreading lies, 338 00:21:16.920 --> 00:21:19.880 but the flood couldn't be stopped. In the digital age, 339 00:21:19.920 --> 00:21:22.799 high profile murder case is never just a trial. Its 340 00:21:22.839 --> 00:21:28.000 content conspiracies filled the silence like mold and a sealed room. 341 00:21:28.319 --> 00:21:31.160 Some claim Coleburger was part of a secret government program 342 00:21:31.240 --> 00:21:35.640 studying criminal behavior. Others argued the killings were ritual. Still 343 00:21:35.680 --> 00:21:39.440 others pushed the narrative that Colburger had accomplices, despite no 344 00:21:39.519 --> 00:21:42.839 evidence supporting it. One YouTube channel claimed to have proof 345 00:21:42.920 --> 00:21:46.039 Colburger had a relationship with one of the victims, citing 346 00:21:46.039 --> 00:21:50.119 body language cues and digital energy. The video got over 347 00:21:50.160 --> 00:21:53.519 two million views before being debumped. Even as the court 348 00:21:53.559 --> 00:21:56.880 moved forward filing motion, setting dates, assembling witness lists, the 349 00:21:56.920 --> 00:22:00.079 internet had made up its mind. It wasn't about justice. 350 00:22:00.200 --> 00:22:04.039 It was about who could monetize the mystery first. Once 351 00:22:04.039 --> 00:22:08.519 misinformation begins, it's almost impossible to undo. Here's how it spread. 352 00:22:08.799 --> 00:22:12.359 Random user posts on Reddit. TikTok creator screenshots it and 353 00:22:12.400 --> 00:22:15.960 adds dramatic narration. YouTube channel builds a thirty minute video 354 00:22:16.000 --> 00:22:20.240 around it. Twitter accounts amplify it, saying why aren't MSM 355 00:22:20.319 --> 00:22:24.519 reporting this? Mainstream news picks it up as online speculation, 356 00:22:24.839 --> 00:22:28.039 giving it legitimacy. Now it's not just a theory, it's 357 00:22:28.079 --> 00:22:32.799 a cycle. All of this isn't just noise, it's legally dangerous. 358 00:22:33.319 --> 00:22:36.400 Colberger has a constitutional right to a fair trial, which 359 00:22:36.440 --> 00:22:39.240 means an impartial jury. But how do you find twelve 360 00:22:39.279 --> 00:22:42.519 people who haven't already seen the false claims that Colberger 361 00:22:42.640 --> 00:22:46.720 was a BTK copycat, the leaked fabricated crime scene photos, 362 00:22:47.039 --> 00:22:50.359 the endless YouTube thumbnails calling him a psychopath. You can, 363 00:22:50.759 --> 00:22:53.759 and the defense knows that, and Taylor will use this 364 00:22:53.839 --> 00:22:57.279 to her advantage, already getting a change of venue, looking 365 00:22:57.279 --> 00:23:01.039 to individually question every jur about media exposure and sequester 366 00:23:01.160 --> 00:23:04.759 the jury during trial, because the more poison the jury pool, 367 00:23:04.799 --> 00:23:09.480 the more reasonable doubt can be injected. Meanwhile, Coburger has 368 00:23:09.480 --> 00:23:12.799 said nothing, but you can guarantee hees listening. Sources say 369 00:23:12.839 --> 00:23:16.160 he reads every filing, watches the public response, knows the 370 00:23:16.240 --> 00:23:19.960 narrative swirling about him. His silence does two things. It 371 00:23:20.079 --> 00:23:22.680 keeps his options open. If the state case weakens, he 372 00:23:22.720 --> 00:23:25.480 can consider a plea. If it strengthens, he can claim 373 00:23:25.519 --> 00:23:29.119 he was respectful of the process all along. It creates mystique. 374 00:23:29.160 --> 00:23:33.160 In the public's eye. Silence becomes ambiguity, and ambiguity becomes 375 00:23:33.200 --> 00:23:36.759 a mirror. People will project onto it. Some see guilt 376 00:23:37.000 --> 00:23:41.079 others see escapegoat, a few even see a misunderstood genius, 377 00:23:41.559 --> 00:23:44.240 and in silence, all of it can be true until 378 00:23:44.279 --> 00:23:48.920 the trial makes one version real. The Gonsalves, Mogan, Kernodle, 379 00:23:48.960 --> 00:23:52.039 and Shapin families are living through a double trauma, the 380 00:23:52.079 --> 00:23:55.480 loss of their children and the public dissection of that loss. 381 00:23:56.599 --> 00:23:59.480 Under the gag order, they have been prevented from speaking freely, 382 00:23:59.720 --> 00:24:02.279 but the the Internet hasn't, and every day they're forced 383 00:24:02.279 --> 00:24:05.880 to watch people debating how their children screamed, live streams 384 00:24:05.960 --> 00:24:09.559 ranking the most suspicious, roommates comment sections mocking their mourning. 385 00:24:10.480 --> 00:24:14.480 Their silence isn't protective, it's weaponized against them, and this 386 00:24:14.640 --> 00:24:17.400 is the human cost of gag orders in a viral 387 00:24:17.559 --> 00:24:22.359 media environment. As the trial nears, two parallel stories are 388 00:24:22.440 --> 00:24:26.359 racing towards collision. The court story based on evidence, testimony, 389 00:24:26.359 --> 00:24:30.200 and procedure, the internet story based on content, outrage and clout. 390 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:33.400 But only one of them matters, and that is inside 391 00:24:33.440 --> 00:24:36.759 the courtroom, and that's where the public narrative goes to die. 392 00:24:37.039 --> 00:24:38.640 All Right, We're going to wrap up right here, and 393 00:24:38.759 --> 00:24:40.559 in the next episode we're gonna pick up where we 394 00:24:40.680 --> 00:24:43.160 left off. All of the information that goes with. This 395 00:24:43.279 --> 00:24:46.880 episode can be found in the description box What's up everyone, 396 00:24:46.960 --> 00:24:49.680 and welcome back to the program. In this episode, we're 397 00:24:49.680 --> 00:24:52.599 picking up where we left off with our exhaustive recap 398 00:24:52.960 --> 00:24:55.799 of the murders in Moscow and now the trial of 399 00:24:55.799 --> 00:25:00.599 Brian Coohberger. There's nothing dramatic about justice. It doesn't just 400 00:25:00.680 --> 00:25:03.519 come with background music or a last minute confession. It 401 00:25:03.559 --> 00:25:08.240