Mega Edition: Bryan Kohberger And The Order Denying His Autism Motions (9/24/26)

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...