How vulnerable was the home on King Road?

What made 1122 King Road stand out to a killer?

When you stand outside the property and walk around it, nothing stands out of note.

Having seen the house in person Memorial Day weekend, I was amazed at how much more compact the neighborhood is than what you see on television. Being there in person gives you an even better appreciation of how on top of one another these homes and apartments are.

That said, the home at 1122 had to stand out for some reason to the alleged killer.

Even more perplexing is did this quadruple murder have to take place to begin with?

The prevailing theory is that the killer entered the home from the kitchen patio door on what is considered the second floor of the three-story residence. It is also reported from one of the two surviving roommates that the killer left the home through that same sliding door.

While it is easy to be a Monday morning quarterback, there were several deficiencies that made the residents at 1122 more vulnerable.

The most glaring one to me was the fact that the patio was accessible to anyone who wanted to go there.

Imagine for a moment if that patio had been surrounded by a big gate and/or fence. Yes, the killer may well had still be able to get in. That said, a big gate/fence surrounding the patio outside the kitchen door would have made it much more challenging. Also, think about how security cameras may have led a killer to think twice about entering. The individual who owned the home at the time of the killings has since given the property to the University of Idaho. It is now boarded up and much more difficult for someone to break in (there is also security there 24/7 now).

We also do not know if the residents (Kaylee, Maddie, Xana, Bethany, Dylan) locked the doors on a regular basis. If they did not, this would have made it so much easier for the killer to come in.

Let’s be honest…. it is Moscow, Idaho and not Chicago or Los Angeles. You’re not expecting to have a quadruple homicide in a town of some 25,000 people. As such, it would not be terribly uncommon for many people to not lock their doors and windows in this quaint little college town.

The old adage that a killer will do whatever it takes to kill is true. Even better security at 1122 King Road may not have prevented this tragedy.

At the end of the day, however, that home was vulnerable as were its occupants on that fateful Nov. 13 morning.