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Bryan Kohberger wants these words banned from his Idaho murder trial — including ‘bushy eyebrows’

Accused killer Bryan Kohberger has asked the court to refrain from using certain words during his University of Idaho quadruple murder trial – including “murderer” and references to “bushy eyebrows,” according to newly unsealed filings.  

Kohberger’s legal team made the requests as the defense team continues its attempts to have heaps of evidence tossed ahead of the August trial date. 

Recent filings from accused killer Bryan Kohberger’s defense team include a request to block use of words like “murder,” “murderer,” “murdered,” and “murder weapon” in reference to him.

Bryan Kohberger’s attorneys have asked the court to throw out the possibility of the death penalty in his trial for the alleged murder of four University of Idaho students in 2022. AP Photo/Matt Rourke, Pool
Kohberger is accused of killing Madison Mogen, 21, top left, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, bottom left, Ethan Chapin, 20, center, and Xana Kernodle, 20, right. Instagram

“Psychopath,” and “sociopath” are also words they asked not be applied to Kohberger during the trial, arguing they are “unfairly prejudicial,” and amount to “name calling.”

“To label Mr. Kohberger as a ‘murderer,’ the alleged weapon consistent with an empty sheath as a ‘murder weapon,’ or to assert that any of the four decedents was ‘murdered’ by Mr. Kohberger denies his right to a fair trial and the right to be presumed innocent,” Kohberger’s attorney Anne Taylor said in filings unsealed this week.

The house where the four murders took place seen on Jan. 3, 2023. AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File

The defense also requested that the phrase “bushy eyebrows” – a description of the supposed killer given by a roommate who was in the Moscow house the night of the grisly November 2022 killings – be blocked from the trial on similar grounds.

And they asked the court to limit the number of photos shown to jurors of the violent crime scene where Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21,  Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, were knifed to death.

Those photos have not been released, but the father of Goncalves told Fox News Digital they showed “tears” and “big open gouges” the victims suffered at the killer’s hand.

Kohberger’s trial is set to begin in August. AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, Pool

Other filings include a request to block Kohberger’s Amazon purchase history and “click activity” from being exhibited in his trial, which the defense says could be “unfairly prejudicial” because of the company’s algorithm-driven platform for showing products to users.

A 2023 report from NBC showed that Kohberger used Amazon to purchase a Ka Bar knife – the type of blade that matches a sheath found at the crime scene.

The number of filings have been so great that the Ada County judge overseeing the case declared that going forward both sides will need to legally justify the sealing of any filings they want to be confidential.

Blood seen on the outside wall of the Moscow house. James Keivom

But it’s not just the defense filing motions – prosecutors have demanded that the defense stop referencing the state’s intent to apply the death penalty to a conviction as “an attempt to kill” Kohberger.

Kohberger’s attorneys have asked to limit the use of the word “murder” at the murder trial. via REUTERS

The death penalty question has taken center stage in the pre-trial hearings, with the defense making numerous attempts to have it thrown out.

Recent filings invoked the Idaho case of Lori Vallow, a mother convicted of murdering two of her children but was spared the death penalty.

A not guilty plea was filed on Kohberger’s behalf.

The next hearing to consider the latest motions is scheduled for April.

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