MOSCOW, Idaho — The home where four University of Idaho students were murdered last year will be demolished at the end of the month.
According to the university, the house on King Road in Moscow will be demolished starting Thursday, Dec. 28 at 7 a.m. Additionally, the defense team for the suspect, Bryan Kohberger, will have access to the house this week.
The decision to tear down the house was made to "decrease further impact" on other students living in the neighborhood.
“It is the grim reminder of the heinous act that took place there,” University of Idaho President Scott Green said. “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.”
Kohberger's defense team will be at the house taking pictures and measurements of the area on Thursday and Friday. Once they are done, the university will start preparing for the demolition.
Demolition is scheduled to begin on Dec. 28 and is expected to last several days.
"The house is a daily reminder," said Jodi Walker, the communications manager for U of I. "We'll never forget, we can't forget but we can heal, we can come together and we can begin to move into the next phase."
The family of Kaylee Goncalves, one of the victims, has previously shared their reservations about demolishing the home. On Friday, the Goncalves family attorney, Shanon Gray, released the following statement:
Let us ask this: Isn’t it better to have the King Rd. House and not need it than need the house and not have it? That has been our question to the Prosecution and the University of Idaho for the entire time the demo of the King Road has been an issue. But why is it even up for discussion? This is one of the most horrific crimes in the history of Idaho and the University of Idaho wants to destroy one of the most critical pieces of evidence in the case - and it is also important to make note that there is now a demolition date before there is even a trial date set. This alone speaks volumes.
It is obvious from the two recent visits to the house, by both the Prosecution and the Defense, that there is still evidentiary value in having the King Road house still standing. There may be additional discovery by either party that prompts one side or the other to go back to the scene of the crime. There has always been a dialogue about there 3-D imaging or they are building a model to replicate the home, etc…First and foremost, what a waste of state money and resources and secondly, nothing replaces the real thing. Jurors are notoriously unpredictable and they tend to make decisions on a variety of facts and circumstances. It would be foolish of us to try and foresee what they will want or need to make a just verdict in this case.
The family has stressed tirelessly to the Prosecution and the University of Idaho the importance (evidentiary and emotionally) that the King Road house carries but nobody seems to care enough. It’s like screaming into a void. Nobody is listening and everyone tells you how sorry they are for the decision but the families’ opinion isn’t a priority. Victims' families have a voice and should be heard and listened to!
Boise-based criminal defense attorney David Leroy said juries will sometimes want to walk through a space, especially one as large and complex as the house on King Road. In this case, however, Leroy said both sides have time and technology to recreate the structure.
""Because we'll have diagrams, and perhaps three-dimensional recreations, lots of photographs and lots of videos, I would not expect the jury to be lost in the special relations in the home and understanding the crime scene," he explained.
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