by C. Cortez and Erin Banks
After Bryan Kohberger’s (28) arrest at his parents’ home in Chestnuthill Township in the murders of the “Idaho Four,” Kaylee Concalves (21), Madison Mogen (21), Xana Kernodle (20) and her boyfriend Ethan Chapin (20) on December 30, 2022, the internet exploded with accounts of people who both verifiably and allegedly know the suspect on a personal or professional level. Between reports that he seemed like a well adjusted young man and that he had “always been creepy,” disturbing news spread online about Kohberger’s alleged conduct after his arrest.
Valerie Cipollina (50) of Garnerville, New York, who was occupying a cell close to Kohberger on the grounds of domestic violence charges against her, stated that Kohberger allegedly began acting aggressively, if not downright delusionally, screaming at the top of his lungs, “I cut them, I’ll cut you! You come in here and I’ll cut you. I’m going to pee on your face. Do what you want with me, I don’t give a shit.” This appears to equal a confession to the quadruple homicide. A surprising admission for a PhD candidate who studied under what some consider used to be an expert on psychology and criminology during her prime several decades ago – Dr. Katherine Ramsland who teaches at DeSales University in Pennsylvania.
Cipollina further intimated that Kohberger, whom she had initially not recognized, kept trying to expose himself to her by lifting up his shirt. A female guard allegedly peeked into his cell, requesting for him to put back on his pants. “I couldn’t see his genitals because the glass wall only went down so far. I could see him through the polycarbonate glass window of his jail cell. He was standing up right against it, yelling out violent rap lyrics,” such as “Fuck my enemies and foes” from Lil Wayne’s ‘Multiple Flows,’ finishing his one-man rap show by singing misogynistic Bad Bunny songs.
The guard on duty is said to have made an attempt at calming Kohberger down, to which the latter responded with, “Come on in, motherfucker! You come in here, let’s talk. Come in all of you. You scared of me?! You should be scared of me. You’re going to do nothing to me because I’m going to cut all of you up. Come into this cell and I’ll show you I’m a creeper. Come in this cell and I’ll cut you up, too.”
While the majority of people were quick to believe Cipollina, her story paints a very different light of Kohberger, who at this point in time appears to have mostly been viewed as more of a quiet, albeit stern, type of person in all aspects of his life. Indeed, Kohberger was described as only briefly flashing reporters outside the courthouse an “icy, penetrative stare” (New York Post) on January 3, 2023. Would this not have been the ideal time to re-enact New Year’s Eve? Because the only logical explanation coming to mind for this behavior is that Kohberger would play at an insanity defense. In Idaho, a defendant can use documented mental illness to “undermine the prosecution’s proof that he was capable of forming the intent necessary to commit the charged crime, or mens rea,” according to APA. It is technically not an insanity defense but amounts to the same.
And for this, he’d want as many witnesses for bizarre behavior as possible, but did not opt for it yesterday. As Kohberger was arrested during the daytime while at his parents house, it appears unlikely he was under the influence of alcohol or drugs. So what purpose would someone with no prior known impulse control issues have exposing themselves, singing songs and confessing to murder while threatening his jailers at the same time? Is there a method to the madness?
Today though, Monroe County Correctional Facility warden Garry Haiden was quoted as saying that Kohberger was a “model prisoner” who was “quiet” and “followed directions,” not causing “any issues,” further describing his time there as “uneventful.” Since Kohberger is considered a maximum status prisoner, he is being monitored by an officer at all times.
We’re now faced with several questions and musings, taking into account Cipollina’s version of events at the Monroe County jail. Some commenters have already been inquiring whether Cipollina may either have been fabricating or exaggerating what occurred during New Year’s Eve. It is unknown whether Cipollina had consumed substances that could have either altered her perception or added to her desire to insert herself into a widely publicized news story.
Others have remarked that the warden may be inclined to bend the truth so Kohberger would not be able to use mental health as an excuse for the crime he may have committed. This, though, appears highly unlikely, particularly since Kohberger was calm and complied with officers’ demands on the day of his court appearance.
Whenever a suspect is arrested in a high profile murder case, contemporaries like to weigh in, and often negatively, overstating minor events, perceived personality flaws or conflicts in order to “prove” they had always known this person was a violent offender in the making. The psychology behind such behavior is explained with ease. It is the faux strength and intellect of the disingenuous: If only I convince myself that deep inside I always knew person X was bad that means I was never in danger. This couldn’t have happened to me. I am safe and will be safe from the next big boogeyman.
Thus, there are various others who now claim that PhD candidate and teaching assistant Kohberger was either known as a “black sheep” at the university and/or that his demeanor drastically changed after the execution of the murders on November 13, 2022.
Kohberger is currently being portrayed as someone who was “oddly engrossed in his studies,” as well as “oddly combative about them,” leaving uncomfortably long and extensive notes on the students’ papers to the point many of them complained about him.
One female student alleges that Kohberger “mansplained” to her, a fact that shook her up so much she left the class leaving her belongings behind. The term “mansplain” is often used by so-called “rad fems,” radical feminists openly engaging in misandry.
One of Kohberger’s undergrads at Washington State University shared that Kohberger didn’t appear as strict, giving out better grades, while overall being quieter at the same time. He allegedly stopped grooming, appearing to classes with “stubble” on his face. Hayden Stinchfield, who was enrolled during the fall semester at WSU, described Kohberger as “definitely kind of a creepy guy,” claiming that he grew more and more distracted and looked “a lot worse” after the murders.
Another student, Joey Famularo, relayed to journalists that several students had spoken to Kohberger about his strict grading tactics “around the time that the murders took place,” after which Kohberger began easing up. It hasn’t been determined yet whether the change of grading was implemented due to this simple – and first ever made – request, or because Kohberger’s system was in uproar after the murders.
Grad student Ben Roberts describes Kohberger as “super awkward” and “always looking for a way to fit in,” despite acting confident. Perhaps not too unusual an issue, given that teaching assistants are not seldom viewed as “brown nosers” and “nerds,” regardless of the veracity of such sentiments.
Kohberger graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 2020, completing his Master of Arts in criminal justice at DeSales University, Pennsylvania in 2022.
Although Kohberger doesn’t appear to be a serial killer, his lack of grooming and overall changed behavior reminds of the sixth phase of serial murder, namely the “Totem Phase,” which occurs after the “Murder Phase.” From offenders such as Ted Bundy it is known that they withdrew after their crimes in order to relive them, revel in them, until the realization slowly began to set in that the excitement was over. In the “Totem” and the following “Depression Phase,” the offender may let themselves go, seemingly act more leniently and be more relaxed with and around people; at first due to the relief experienced after the perpetration of the crime, then due to the realization that the fantasy, the urge to kill, has still not dissipated and may even grow more intense after the killing event.
So far, it is unclear whether Kohberger’s parents Michael Jr. (67) and Maryanne (62), or his older siblings Melissa – a practicing mental health counselor in New Jersey – and Amanda, noticed any behavioral changes in the last seven weeks. Mother Maryanne was described by Kohberger’s former classmate Deja Mann as “the most warm-hearted, kind individual,” and the family as “average.” Another high school friend, Thomas Arntz, echoed Mann’s sentiments, calling both parents “genuinely kind people.” But of course, so were the Cowells, Ted Bundy’s family, even by Bundy himself, who yet grew up amidst violence, emotional terror and neglect.
That all was not well within the home was made clear when details about the Kohbergers’ spending habits came to light. The couple filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy twice in their marriage; in 1996 as well as in 2010.
All that is known about the parents so far is that they both worked for the Pleasant Valley School District, with Michael being a maintenance worker between 2006-2019 and Maryann being a para-professional assisting special needs students until around the time of the first COVID-related lockdown in 2020. They raised their children in Effort, Pennsylvania before relocating to Albrightsville, a private Indian Mountain Lake community.
After Christmas, Michael flew from Pennsylvania to Spokane, Washington, to accompany his son back on his drive to the family home. Whether this was a family tradition or Kohberger requested his father’s support is unknown. One could also ask why the family didn’t pay for a plane ticket for Kohberger instead, if he was hesitant to drive the 2.5k miles on his own.
There have been speculations that Kohberger may have wanted the white Hyundai Elantra, a key piece of evidence in the Idaho student murders, as far away from the scene of the crime as possible. This seems like a panic-response because selling his vehicle – similarly as to how Bundy did after the 1974 kidnapping of Carol DaRonch – obviously would have been suspicious after the brand and make of the vehicle at the off-campus home had been made known, and yet, somehow Kohberger may have been aware his vehicle needed to disappear as much as him.
Forensic death investigator Joseph Scott Morgan stated yesterday that “if the suspect was in the home when the crime was committed, he would have been super saturated in blood, and that evidence would have transferred into his car. This is an evidence-rich environment, and everyone’s DNA that was on the scene.”
Michael and his son Bryan were pulled over twice during their drive back home, once for speeding in Indiana and once for driving too closely to another vehicle. These traffic stops were coincidental and unrelated to the homicide investigation.
As chief public defender for Monroe County Jason LaBar noted, since Kohberger agreed to be extradited to Idaho, Monroe County Court of Common Pleas Judge Margherita Patti Worthington ordered that he be surrendered to the state of Idaho within ten days from January 3, 2023 in order to be charged with four counts of murder and one count of burglary. All that needed to be proven during yesterday’s hearing was that Kohberger is the person the arrest warrant was made out to and that he was in the area at the times of the crime.
Kohberger could face the death penalty if prosecutor Bill Thompson requests it. Defense attorney LaBar described Kohberger’s reaction to the arrest “shocked a little bit,” adding that his client “believes he’s going to be exonerated.”
Below, photos of Kohberger arriving at the courthouse on January 3, for his 3.30 P.M. extradition hearing. His father Michael (right), mother Maryanne and sister Amanda (below) arrived separately, showing support for their son and brother.
Erin Banks is the author of female serial killer horror thriller ABOUT RAGE, and Ted Bundy: Examining The Unconfirmed Survivor Stories.
Sources:
Spokesman Review, Associated Press, NonStop Local, Newsweek, New York Post, Daily Mail UK, Meaww, MSN, International Business Times, CNN, NBC News, Fox News, Instagram, TMZ.
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