Bryan Kohberger defense ramps up legal maneuvers in bid to keep Idaho murders suspect off death row

As Bryan Kohberger’s trial date approaches in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students, new evidence and legal positioning continues to emerge and evolve as the parties pick up the pace of court filings.The defense is asking the court to limit the use of the word “murder” at trial, as well as ban terms like psychopath, sociopath and even references to “bushy eyebrows.” They also don’t want the judge to allow too many crime scene photos to be shown in front of the jury because the grisly imagery could be “inflammatory.”On the other hand, prosecutors have demanded the defense stop referring to the state’s intent to seek the death penalty if there is a conviction as “an attempt to kill” the defendant.In what could become one of the more consequential motions, Kohberger’s defense asked the court to throw out the possibility of the death penalty on the grounds that prosecutors took too long handing over discovery disclosures.The filings became public as part of a slew of documents unsealed by the Ada County judge now overseeing the case, who told both sides they will have to legally justify submitting filings under seal going forward. Shanon Gray, the attorney for the family of victim Kaylee Goncalves, 21, said he could not share his views on the filings themselves due to a long-standing gag order on the case – but he blasted the lack of communication between authorities and his clients.“The Latah County prosecutors’ failure to notify the victims’ families about the content of the motions that were being filed is unacceptable,” he told Fox News Digital.“As we have previously stated… the communication from their office to the Goncalves family has been poor, to say the least.”Kohberger’s attorney, Anne Taylor, has had several prior attempts to take the death penalty off the table rejected, but she noted that Lori Vallow, a convicted multi-murderer, successfully made a similar argument in her own Idaho case.“T...