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Bryan Kohberger’s restitution hearing ends with no decision, but prosecutor admits slip-up
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Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson admitted to a major miscalculation in what the University of Idaho victims’ families should be owed in restitution, telling a judge Wednesday that he would no longer be seeking roughly $27,000 in travel expenses that were not outlined in Bryan Kohberger’s plea deal — asking the court to award about a tenth of that in funeral expenses instead.
Kohberger’s lawyers noted that the travel expenses were not part of the plea deal after Thompson mistakenly thought they would be covered by a victims’ compensation fund and agreed that the funeral expenses amount to $3,075.58. However, they argued Kohberger still shouldn’t have to pay.
Judge Steven Hippler grilled attorney Elisa Massoth about the terms of the deal and why Kohberger shouldn’t have to live up to them. He ended the hearing without issuing a decision, which is expected to come later in writing.
The judge also revealed that Kohberger had already received a “five-figure” donation to his jail funds. Massoth claimed that it was mostly for communication purposes, although the cost of sending a message at Kohberger’s former jail is just a few cents at a time.
UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO VICTIMS’ FAMILIES ASK JUDGE TO PERMANENTLY BLOCK CRIME SCENE IMAGES
Madison Mogen, top left, smiles on the shoulders of her best friend, Kaylee Goncalves, as they pose with Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, and two other housemates in Goncalves’ final Instagram post, shared the day before the four students were stabbed to death. (@kayleegoncalves/Instagram)
A plea deal is essentially a contract, Hippler said, and as a result, the prosecution can’t seek restitution for travel expenses outside the terms of the deal.
However, he also rejected claims from the defense that Kohberger has no potential future income. There was the unspecified “five-figure” donation, he said, and Kohberger or a relative could potentially profit off of his story in a movie, book or TV deal.
“There’s no way that BK is ever going to profit from any sort of movie or book because Idaho…specifically precludes that,” Massoth countered.
Hippler said that’s not exactly how the law works. Money earned from such a deal would be earmarked to cover debts to the victims if it existed, he said.
“If there’s no debt for those certain things, does the money not go then to the defendant?” he asked.
“That’s not my reading of the code,” Massoth said.
INSIDE THE HORROR: IDAHO FOUR CRIME SCENE PHOTOS REVEAL BLOODY AFTERMATH OF ATTACK
Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse for his sentencing hearing on July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho. (Kyle Green-Pool/Getty Images)
Kohberger did not appear, although lawyers on both sides attended remotely.
His defense had previously said he shouldn’t have to pay up since the victims’ families received money from donors on GoFundMe.
Prosecutors, however, counter that he has “a history” of receiving “compensation” from his family and unidentified third parties while behind bars — money they say should go toward the victims’ families.
At issue was roughly $27,000 to be split between the parents of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and the mother of Madison Mogen, her 21-year-old best friend, to cover travel and other expenses incurred during Kohberger’s case.
He killed the two young women in an upstairs bedroom at their rental home in Moscow, Idaho, then went downstairs to kill their roommate, 20-year-old Xana Kernodle, and her sleeping boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, also 20.
IDAHO POLICE CALL OUT ‘GROSS INACCURACIES’ IN KOHBERGER TV SPECIAL, SPECIAL PROSECUTOR INVESTIGATING LEAKS
Exterior view of Idaho State Correctional Complex in Kuna, Idaho, Tuesday, July 22, 2025. Notorious killer, Bryan Kohberger is being housed at this facility after being sentenced in the stabbing murders of four University of Idaho students in 2022. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
The sources of Kohberger’s prison funds are not immediately clear, but throughout his case, supporters have claimed to have sent money to his commissary in posts on social media.
Prosecutors filed his jailhouse financial history under seal.
Paul Mauro, a retired NYPD inspector and Fox News contributor who has been following the case, said some of the money could be coming from female supporters, but large sums could come from media outlets seeking exclusive interviews.
Kohberger has never told his story, and told the judge he would “respectfully decline,” when given the opportunity to speak at his sentencing.
He said it’s not unrealistic to think that someone would offer Kohberger between five and six figures to break his silence.
If Kohberger does eventually speak out, he likely will not be able to profit, Fox News Digital reported previously. Like New York’s 1977 “Son of Sam” law, Idaho has legislation that helps prevent criminals from making money through detailing their offenses.
According to Idaho law, if a criminal signs a deal to profit from telling their crime story — including through a movie, book or magazine article — the profits first go to the state treasurer to be sent to an escrow account. Victims or their families, who must be notified, can claim the money through civil lawsuits within five years.
As part of his plea deal to avoid the death penalty, Kohberger agreed to pay more than $250,000 in criminal fines and fees plus another $20,000 in civil judgments to each victim’s family.
His lawyers argued last month that he shouldn’t have to pay another roughly $20,000 to Goncalves’ parents or nearly $7,000 more to Mogen’s mother, Karen Laramie, in travel and accommodation expenses requested by the prosecution.
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“The additional funds sought do not qualify as an economic loss under Idaho Code 19-5304 because Steve and Kristi Goncalves and Karen Larmie (sic) received extensive funds through multiple GoFundMe campaigns that specifically asked for and covered the expenses sought,” attorneys Anne Taylor, Elisa Massoth and Bicka Barlow wrote in a court filing.
Fox News’ Sophia Compton contributed to this report.
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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — San Francisco Supervisor Jackie Fielder hosted her first community listening session Thursday night since returning from a three-month medical leave.
Dozens of District 9 residents packed the Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center to welcome back Fielder and voice concerns about issues affecting their communities.
“We are thankful that you took time for yourself to equip yourself to be sitting here today,” one attendee told Fielder. “So I thank you and commend you for returning.”
Fielder returned to City Hall last month after taking a three-month medical leave.
“I’m just grateful for the outpouring of support that I had and glad to be back on the job,” Fielder said. “Mental health is really prevalent, and I’m not going to shy away from the fact that I had a mental health crisis. This is a challenging job, and I’m very privileged to be here.”
Fielder said she is hosting a series of town hall-style meetings to give residents an opportunity to voice their concerns.
“To me, the biggest issue locally is the homeless issue, and it’s citywide,” San Francisco resident Maggie Weis said.
Fielder was joined by members of the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and San Francisco Police Department to answer questions about pedestrian safety, city budget cuts and other issues.
The supervisor said one of her priorities moving forward is expanding access to clean, well-maintained public restrooms.
“[We’re] still seeing a lot of feces around the district and city,” Fielder said. “Would love to see our city have more public bathrooms and be able to maintain them as well.”
The next listening session is scheduled for July 23 at 6 p.m. at La Fénix in the Mission.
Watch the full report from KRON4’s Sara Stinson in the video player at the top of the story.
DENVER — Denver Mayor Mike Johnston is launching a $100 million plan to boost the local economy and support 10,000 jobs over the next three years.
Johnston announced the four-part program Thursday morning, flanked by business leaders while praising downtown businesses like brunch eatery Snooze.
▶️ WATCH: Denver7’s Alex Dowd reports on the plan
Denver mayor promises to create 10K jobs in next 3 years
Snooze Co-Founder Adam Schlegel said his business benefited from a similar program when U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper was mayor in the early 2000s.
“The city really was the one that stepped up,” Schlegel said. “We wouldn’t have started if it wouldn’t have been for the economic development office. We ended up getting an incentive from the city to open up, particularly in this space [downtown]. It was a fiscal incentive to do it, in addition to coaching.”
Both of those are offered in the new four-part Denver Jobs Agenda. With funding from the Denver Downtown Development Authority and the Office of Economic Development and Opportunity, Johnston aims to develop start-ups in the city, grow existing businesses and draw in new companies while working to advance the Denver-area workforce across industries.
At the end of the last fiscal quarter, Denver’s unemployment rate hovered around 3.6% — under the national rate of 4.2% — according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, while office vacancy sits just under 40%, according to commercial real estate broker CBRE.
Johnston and other speakers made multiple references to more jobs bringing more people downtown.
“Denver has so many things going for it, so it will come back,” Schlegel said. “It’s not coming back as fast as I want, or as much as anyone will, but will it have a long-term future? 100%. It’s things like this, though, that I think give us a lot of hope that it can happen sooner than waiting it out.”
▶️ Watch the full press conference
Press conference: Denver mayor announces Denver Jobs Agenda
Chris Berthiaume, the city’s director of workforce industry initiatives, says the three workforce development centers across Denver serve around 20,000 people each year. He’s confident this new initiative will help more of those visitors find employment.
“We want to focus on things like aerospace, cybersecurity, green construction,” Berthiaume said. “This new initiative really just tightens the focus on sectors that we know are growing. Colorado is home to a huge aerospace culture. Quantum technology is emerging and coming. Green workforce are jobs that we know drive around Denver. Construction is everywhere. We need to make sure we have a skilled workforce that’s ready to take on those jobs.”
While also finding employers to hire them and stay within the community for the long haul.
“I think the reason businesses work — certainly restaurants work — is that you are integral to the community specifically where you are,” Schlegel said. “There are so many people in our community that really believe in Denver and want to see what it can be, and so it will get there.”
It’s well on the way. Denver’s Economic Development Corporation says they’re working with 52 active prospects that could bring more than 12,000 jobs to the area.
Coloradans making a difference | Denver7 featured videos
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Global entertainment company Webtoon is returning to the hallowed halls of San Diego Comic-Con with a larger-than-life slate of panels featuring top talent and fresh announcements.
They will be shining the spotlight on some of today’s most engaging webcomic creators, including Derek V. Song (Fantasy High) and Punko (Cinderella Boy).
Let’s take a look at their schedule:
Thursday, July 23 – 10am – Room 29AB
Creature Craft: Visionaries of Horror Comics Share Their Secrets
This panel features Punko, creator of Stagtown and Cinderella Boy on WEBTOON; Cullen Bunn, creator of Ripcord and Deluge for Ignition Press; and Cat Staggs, co-creator of Death Mask, and artist on Tales for a HalloweeNight for Storm King Comics. Rotem Rusak, Editor-in-Chief at Nerdist, will moderate.
Friday, July 24 – 10am – Room 32AB
Love in Every Universe: The Great Romance Trope Debate
Join ROSEOAK, creator of Not So Silent on WEBTOON, Alessandra Ferreri, Head of Content at Wattpad, E.M. Wilson, author of Situationship, and Becca Erin Title, founder of Meet Cute Romance Bookshop. The panel is moderated by Crystal Bell, the Culture Editor at Mashable.
Friday, July 24 – 1pm – Room 32AB
Adapting Fantasy High for WEBTOON with Derek V. Song
Featuring Derek V. Song, writer of Fantasy High. Fans will get a behind-the-scenes look at adapting the beloved Dimension 20 series for WEBTOON and learn more about bringing the world of Fantasy High to a new visual format.
Saturday, July 25 – 11:30am – Room 24ABC
What’s Next from WEBTOON Entertainment
Featuring Ryan Lee, Head of Content at WEBTOON; Sydney Bright, Head of Global Animation at WEBTOON Productions; Erik Kozura, Producer at WEBTOON; ROSEOAK, creator of Not So Silent; Derek V. Song, writer of Fantasy High; Punko, creator of Stagtown and Cinderella Boy; and Ucheomaaa, creator of Vibe Check! on WEBTOON. Journalist, comic critic, and 2026 Eisner judge, Tiffany Babb, will moderate. his panel will deliver a slew of announcements, exclusive first looks, and Creator appearances from its platform and entertainment businesses. Additionally, the panel will give fans a window into what’s next from WEBTOON’s most exciting stories and projects, with news from WEBTOON Originals, WEBTOON Productions, WEBTOON Unscrolled, and more.
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