Bryan Kohberger reportedly was fired as a teaching assistant at Washington State University after it investigated him for run-ins with a professor and his behavior toward women in the weeks leading up to his arrest in the murders of four University of Idaho students.
Kohberger, 28, who was a PhD student at WSU, met with faculty members to discuss his job performance and disturbing behavior with female students, according to the New York Times.
On Sept. 23, 2022, he had a verbal “altercation” with Professor John Snyder, whom he was assisting, according to the termination letter obtained by the newspaper.
Kohberger met with a university official to “discuss norms of professional behavior,” the Times reported, citing three sources and a letter that informed him he had failed to meet the conditions required to maintain his funding.
A professor emailed Kohberger the following month about “the ways in which you had failed to meet your expectations as a T.A. thus far in the semester,” according to the outlet.
On Nov. 2 — 11 days before Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, were found dead — department officials reportedly met with Kohberger to discuss an improvement plan.
But on Dec. 9, Kohberger had another “altercation” with Snyder, the Times reported.
In December, professors also were informed that Kohberger had made multiple female students feel uncomfortable, according to the paper.
In one incident, he allegedly followed a woman to her car, two sources familiar with the situation told the Times on condition of anonymity.
The university did not find Kohberger guilty of any wrongdoing regarding the female student, two people told the paper.
The decision to eliminate his funding and remove him as a TA was based on his unsatisfactory performance in the position, including his failure to meet the “norms of professional behavior” in his dealings with the faculty, according to the sources.
On Dec. 19, the department informed Kohbrger that he “had not made progress regarding professionalism” and removed him from his position, the paper reported.
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