Bryan Kohberger Seeks Judge Steven Hippler’s Removal in Guilty Plea Challenge (8/31/26)

Bryan Kohberger is escalating his effort to undo his guilty plea by asking for Judge Steven Hippler to be removed from his post-conviction case and for the proceedings to be moved out of Ada County. Kohberger’s new court-appointed attorney, Gregory Rauch, argues that Hippler can no longer be viewed as impartial because of the combination of his prior rulings, his rejection of defense claims that Kohberger’s trial team was unprepared, and comments he made at sentencing questioning Kohberger’s honesty and character. The motion points specifically to Hippler calling Kohberger a “faceless coward” and “the worst of the worst,” while also questioning whether Kohberger was capable of telling the truth. The defense argues those statements matter now because Kohberger’s credibility could become central to whether his guilty plea was coerced or involuntary. Kohberger is claiming that his former lawyers pushed him into falsely confessing by overwhelming him with death-row fears, failing to adequately review the massive discovery record and withholding or minimizing evidence he now says could have helped establish his innocence.

At the same time, Kohberger’s defense is asking for the post-conviction proceedings to be transferred back to Latah County, where the murders occurred. The original criminal case was moved to Ada County because of concerns about seating an impartial jury and handling the enormous logistical demands of a capital trial, but Rauch argues those reasons no longer apply because the current proceeding will be decided by a judge rather than a jury. The defense says moving the case back to Latah County would better serve the convenience of witnesses and the interests of justice. Together, the two motions show that Kohberger’s challenge is expanding beyond the validity of the plea itself and into the structure of the proceeding that will decide it. If he ultimately succeeds in withdrawing his guilty plea, the case could return to trial posture and potentially reopen the death-penalty exposure that disappeared when he accepted the 2025 plea agreement.


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Bryan Kohberger seeks judge’s removal in escalating bid to undo guilty plea




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