Episode Details

Judge Steven Hippler rejected Bryan Kohberger’s effort to use his autism spectrum disorder diagnosis as a basis for removing the death penalty from the case, ruling that the defense had not established that autism should receive the same constitutional protection the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized for intellectual disability. Kohberger’s attorneys had argued that his diagnosis reduced his culpability, undermined the deterrent and retributive purposes of capital punishment and increased the risk of an unreliable death sentence. Hippler disagreed, finding no established national consensus prohibiting the execution of people with autism and concluding that the defense had not shown that autism was legally equivalent to an intellectual disability for purposes of barring capital punishment. He did, however, leave the door open for the diagnosis to be presented as mitigating evidence during a potential penalty phase.

Hippler also placed limits on how Kohberger’s autism and other neuropsychological evidence could be used before the jury. The defense had sought to introduce expert testimony concerning Kohberger’s autism and related conditions, including to provide context for behavior or courtroom demeanor that jurors might otherwise interpret negatively. The court rejected the broader attempt to use those diagnoses to explain his demeanor, noting that Kohberger had not displayed unusual courtroom behavior requiring such an explanation and warning that the evidence could confuse jurors or improperly introduce mental-condition evidence into the guilt phase. The rulings did not erase Kohberger’s autism diagnosis from the case, but they sharply restricted its role: it could potentially be considered in mitigation if he were convicted, but it could not be transformed into a categorical shield from the death penalty or a general explanation for how jurors should interpret him during trial.


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