Steve Goncalves speaks following Bryan Kohberger's sentencing hearing
Steve Goncalves, the father of Kaylee Goncalves, spoke at a news conference following Bryan Kohberger's sentencing hearing.
BOISE, Idaho – During an emotionally charged sentencing hearing in Boise, Idaho, the families and loved ones of Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, and Xana Kernodle confronted convicted killer Bryan Kohberger face-to-face for the first time since he accepted a plea deal sparing him the death penalty.
The day was filled with raw grief, searing anger, and moments of remarkable defiance from the families present at Wednesday’s hearing. Ethan Chapin’s family decided not to attend the hearing.
Here are the most powerful moments from the victims’ families in court:
READ BRYAN KOHBERGER'S SIGNED KILLER CONFESSION
Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse, for his sentencing hearing, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (Kyle Green/AP Photo, Pool)
Emily Alandt opened the day by delivering a statement for her friend Bethany Funke, one of the surviving roommates, who recalled waking up the morning of the murders unaware of what had happened and said she still carries guilt for not knowing sooner.
"That was the worst day of my life, and I know it always will be," she said.
Dylan Mortensen gets a hug after speaking at the sentencing hearing of Bryan Kohberger at the Ada County Courthouse, for his sentencing hearing, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (Kyle Green/AP via Pool)
In the aftermath of the murders, Funke described debilitating panic attacks, her fear of being alone, and the trauma of being harassed by strangers.
Alivea Goncalves, Kaylee’s older sister, delivered a scathing rebuke against Kohberger, saying that he was "not profound. You’re pathetic."
She accused him of being a narcissist desperate for control and ended with a stinging personal attack: "If you hadn’t attacked them in their sleep like a pedophile, Kaylee would’ve kicked your f---ing a--."
Her takedown included rhetorical questions challenging his motive and intelligence.
"What were Kaylee’s last words?" she asked. "Do you feel anything at all—or are you exactly what you always feared? Nothing."
"You didn’t create devastation. You revealed it, and it’s in yourself," she said. "That darkness you carry, that emptiness, you’ll sit with it long after this is over. That is your sentence."
In a blistering takedown, Stevenson said: "You’re a delusional, pathetic, hypochondriac loser who thought you were so much smarter than everybody else."
"All of that effort just to seem important," she said.
Kristi Goncalves, mother of victim Kaylee Goncalves, speaks at the sentencing hearing of Bryan Kohberger at the Ada County Courthouse, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (Kyle Green/AP Photo, Pool)
Goncalves' mother, Kristi Goncalves, followed with an emotional and scathing message.
"When you murdered my daughter, you shattered others. You stole my peace. You altered my every waking moment," she said.
"I wish I could crown you with a jester hat," she said. "Go to he--."
Jazzmin Kernodle, sister of Xana Kernodle, arrives with her father, Jeff Kernodle, and others outside the Ada County Courthouse for the Bryan Kohberger sentencing on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho. (AP Photo/Drew Nash)
Jeff Kernodle, father of victim Xana Kernodle, speaks at the sentencing hearing of Bryan Kohberger at the Ada County Courthouse, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (Kyle Green/AP Photo, Pool)
Kernodle’s sister, Jazzmin Kernodle, brought a moment of grace, declaring: "You didn’t take that from us. And you never will."
She spoke of her sister’s joy, her future stolen, and her belief in eternal justice.
"I will live in her honor. Her voice will echo louder than this pain."
Benjamin Mogen, father of Madison Mogen, cries at the sentencing hearing of Bryan Kohberger at the Ada County Courthouse, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (Kyle Green/AP Photo, Pool)
Mogen’s father, Ben Mogen, spoke of his daughter’s assistance in helping him through addiction.
"When I wasn’t wanting to live anymore, she kept me alive," he said.
He recalled favorite moments with Maddie, including concerts, laughter, and a final Father’s Day card.
"She’s the only great thing I ever really did," he said.
WATCH: Xana Kernodle's aunt offers Bryan Kohberger forgiveness
In a surprising turn, Kernodle’s aunt, Kim Kernodle, told Kohberger that she had chosen to forgive him.
"Bryan, I’m here today to tell you I have forgiven you," she said.
She explained that living with hate was destroying her and that forgiveness was her path to healing.
"If you ever want to talk and tell me what happened, you have my number," she said.
Mogen’s stepfather, Scott Laramie, voiced support for the plea deal, saying it avoided years of appeals and spared the families more trauma.
"This way, his fate is sealed," he said. "Maddie was our purpose and our hope. We remain lost without her, but we will find our way."
Kernodle’s stepfather, Randy Davis, channeled his pain, telling Kohberger directly: "I want to just be out in the woods with you for five minutes… just so I can teach you about loss and pain."
"I love God, I wouldn’t take your life, that’s up to Him. But I guarantee you, you are weak. Go to he--."
Maryann Kohberger, (wearing sunglasses) mother of Bryan Kohberger, along with her daughter, Amanda Kohberger, exit Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, Wednesday, July 23, 2025. The pair were in attendance for Bryan Kohberger's sentencing for the murders of four University of Idaho students in November 2022. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)
Kohberger sat silently through the statements, showing no emotion. When given the chance to speak, he simply said: "I respectfully decline."
Following the conclusion of Kohberger’s sentencing hearing on Wednesday, his mother, Maryann Kohberger, and one of his sisters were seen quietly exiting the Ada County Courthouse.
Kohberger's mother was seen with large black sunglasses and floral attire and his sister was seen in rust-colored attire.
The two were the only family members present on Kohberger’s side throughout the proceedings, which ended with the confessed killer receiving four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus 10 years for burglary.
Madison Mogen, top left, smiles on the shoulders of her best friend, Kaylee Goncalves, as they pose with Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and two other housemates in Goncalves' final Instagram post, shared the day before the four students were stabbed to death. (@kayleegoncalves/Instagram)
Mogen and Goncalves, who were best friends, were killed in a third-floor bedroom. Kohberger's key mistake — the only publicly known physical evidence tying him to the crimes — was a Ka-Bar knife sheath he left under Mogen's body. Police found his DNA on the snap.
On the second floor, Kernodle was awake, having received a DoorDash delivery minutes earlier. Kohberger killed her, then turned his knife on her sleeping boyfriend, Chapin, who was spending the night.
A surviving roommate told police she heard crying and a man's voice say something to the effect of, "It's OK. I'm going to help." Then she saw a masked man with "bushy eyebrows" leave out the back door. For whatever reason, he didn't attack her.
IDAHO MURDERER BRYAN KOHBERGER’S FORMER FRIENDS DIVE INTO KILLER’S MINDSET ABOUT WHY HE DID IT
Bryan Kohberger arrives at the Monroe County Courthouse in Pennsylvania in advance of his extradition hearing. After spending more than two years in custody awaiting trial, he pleaded guilty in the deaths of University of Idaho students Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin at a hearing in Boise July 2, 2025. (The Image Direct for Fox News Digital)
The victims' families have been split over the plea deal, which required Kohberger to waive his right to appeal and to forfeit his right to seek a sentence reduction under Idaho law.
BRYAN KOHBERGER PLEADS GUILTY TO IDAHO MURDERS
Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse, for his sentencing hearing, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (Kyle Green/AP Photo, Pool)
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Chapin's parents and the mothers of Kernodle and Mogen have all voiced support for the plea deal, which will spare them from years of appeals and the trauma of a trial.
In exchange for his guilty plea, Kohberger avoids the death penalty and received the maximum punishment of four consecutive life prison sentences with no possibility of parole, plus another 10 years.
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