MOSCOW, IDAHO — Bryan Kohberger filed a petition for post-conviction relief in Ada County District Court on Monday, claiming actual innocence and ineffective legal counsel after previously pleading guilty to four counts of first-degree murder. Kohberger is representing himself in the filing.

In a statement to a news outlet, Kohberger stated that he is innocent and claimed his guilty plea was based on false promises and disinformation. "My actual innocence is my truth, and the plea, hinged on by false promises and blatant disinformation, MUST be withdrawn," Kohberger wrote.

Kohberger further declared his intention to face trial again. "I hereby declare my intention to enter a not guilty plea, and welcome the State the opportunity to prove their case at trial, as well as to, again, file for the death penalty," he wrote.

The petition asserts that his former legal counsel provided ineffective assistance by withholding exculpatory evidence and misrepresenting prison conditions. He claimed in his petition that lawyers intimidated him with fabricated stories about death row conditions. He also claimed in his petition that clumps of hair were found in the hands of Ethan Chapin.

Kohberger pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in July 2025. During his July 2025 plea hearing, Judge Steven Hippler asked Kohberger if he was pleading guilty because he was guilty, and Kohberger replied, "Yes." Kohberger showed no emotion during his sentencing hearing.

Following the guilty plea, Kohberger was sentenced to four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole and an additional 10 years for burglary. The plea agreement spared him from the death penalty. The families of Ethan Chapin and Madison Mogen supported the plea deal to avoid a trial.

The family of Kaylee Goncalves criticized Kohberger's attempt to withdraw his plea. "He chose not to leave his fate – or the facts of the case – to a jury," the family said in a statement.

The family also noted the length of time Kohberger reviewed case materials before entering his plea. "He never cried foul, never claimed he was uninformed or pressured, and never suggested there were problems with the discovery materials he and his counsel had reviewed for two years that should have been challenged," the family said. "He admitted his guilt." The family stated that Kohberger received exactly what he asked for: a deal that spared his life.

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador responded to the filing with sympathy for the victims' relatives. "My heart goes out to the families of Madison, Kaylee, Xana and Ethan, who have already endured unimaginable loss and now must face today’s deeply painful news," Labrador said. "My office stands ready to do whatever is necessary to ensure justice is fully carried out," he said.

The underlying case stems from the deaths of four university students in Idaho. Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin were killed in November 2022 in Moscow, Idaho. Kaylee Goncalves was 21 years old at the time of her death.

Ethan Chapin was 20 years old at the time of his death. Kaylee Goncalves showed evidence of asphyxiation and blunt force trauma in addition to knife wounds.

Investigators assembled physical and digital evidence linking Kohberger to the scene. Police found DNA matching Kohberger on a knife sheath left at the crime scene. Surveillance video showed a white Hyundai Elantra similar to Kohberger's passing the murder scene multiple times.

Kohberger's cell phone was turned off at the time of the murders. Kohberger's phone was near the victims' house at least 12 times before the murders, mostly late at night or early in the morning.

Kohberger was a doctoral student in criminal justice at Washington State University at the time of the murders. He was arrested in Pennsylvania on December 30, 2022. Investigators found a pistol, two knives, black gloves, a black hat, and a black facemask on his person and in his family home. Kohberger is an American murderer born in 1994.

In the months following his sentencing, Kohberger made additional requests to prison officials. Kohberger petitioned the Idaho Department of Correction for a transfer in August 2025, claiming harassment by fellow inmates. The case has cost taxpayers over $8 million, with nearly $5.5 million spent on his public defense team, according to reports by the Idaho Statesman.