Details of what Bryan Kohberger‘s life is like in the J Block at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution (IMSI) have emerged. And according to the “Cold Case Foundation” director and a retired homicide detective, Chris McDonough, the convicted triple-murderer is “miserable.”
McDonough, who says he has sources inside IMSI, has been speaking out about what he knows about Kohberger at IMSI near Boise, Idaho. On NewsNation‘s Banfield. McDonough said other J Block inmates conspired in advance to torture Kohberger “through using psychology.”
McDonough said, ” … The inmates apparently were waiting for him … They are now making his life absolutely miserable. They’re utilizing the vent system. They’re kicking the doors. They’re taunting him … And my goodness, he’s complaining.”
J Block guards: “There’s nothing we can do.”
Bryan Kohberger is reportedly being tormented and heckled by other inmates in prison and director of the Cold Case Foundation Chris McDonough says there's not much prison guards can do to stop it despite Kohberger's complaints. pic.twitter.com/MdCKtkbfcG
— NewsNation (@NewsNation) August 13, 2025
According to NewsNation, 32 other inmates surround Kohberge in IMSI’s J Block, a long-term restrictive housing unit designed for high-risk inmates, including those serving life sentences.
J Block Inmates are typically held in solitary confinement, spending 23 hours a day in their cells with limited privileges and only one hour of daily outdoor recreation.
McDonough told Banfield, all J Block guards can do is write down Kohberger’s complaints or tell him, ‘Hey, there’s nothing we can do. You’re not in physical harm.’”
“They’re under obligation to basically protect him, right?” McDonough added. “But in this particular situation, he’s in an isolation situation. Those around him can’t get to him physically,” he said.
Still, inmates have circumvented the rules to torment Kohberger. “Communications are a no-no within the prison,” McDonough said, but “inmates are extremely creative.”
“It’s driving him crazy”
Speaking with the Daily Mail, McDonough previously noted that Kohberger’s cleanliness habits to the point of obsession were also interrupted in the J Block, where Kohberger is only allowed to shower every other day.
Inmates housed alongside Kohberger while he was awaiting trial, he had reported he repeatedly washed his hands and took showers several times a day, sometimes for as long as an hour. Kohberger also wore gloves before his arrest.
Also, reports say Kohberger stays awake all night and naps during the day. His sleep schedule is likely affected by the shouting and noise from J Block inmates.
“It’s driving him crazy,” McDonough told the Mail of Kohberger’s life behind bars. “The inmates are tormenting him at night and almost all hours of the day, taunting him through the vents in his cell. They are literally getting up into the grate and yelling at him. The inmates are taking it in turns doing it. It’s relentless.”
