Bryan Kohberger to be sentenced for University of Idaho slayings; victims' families speak
Bryan Kohberger will be sentenced to life in prison for the murders of four University of Idaho students as part of a plea deal that spared him the death penalty.
Nearly three years after four University of Idaho students were found stabbed to death, Bryan Kohberger will face their loved ones ‒ and life in prison ‒ at a lengthy sentencing hearing on July 23.
Kohberger, 30, will be handed four consecutive life sentences for the murders of Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, plus 10 years for burglary, according to his plea agreement. Kohberger pleaded guilty to the murders on July 2 in a deal that spared him the death penalty and deeply divided the victims' families.
The students were found dead in a rental house near the University of Idaho campus in November 2022. The murders horrified the quiet college town of Moscow and set off a weekslong manhunt, which ended with Kohberger's arrest in Pennsylvania, where his family lives.
Investigators say Kohberger, who was a criminal justice student at the time of the murders, had long planned the attack, and DNA evidence, cell phone records and surveillance footage tied him to the stabbings.
Questions have long swirled about what drove Kohberger to kill. President Donald Trump asked Judge Steven Hippler to force Kohberger to explain his motive during the sentencing.
Kohberger will be given the opportunity to make a statement before his sentence is handed down. But his plea deal doesn't require him to explain his actions, and it's unclear if he will speak at all.
Kohberger will, however, hear from family members of his victims. Hippler said the sentencing may stretch into a second day if needed to give victims' families enough time to speak about the impact of his crimes.
What's next in Bryan Kohberger case?
Kohberger waived his right to appeal as part of his plea agreement, but Hippler said he still has the right to do so, citing the U.S. Supreme Court case Garza v. Idaho.
"The right to appeal does not go away because of the waiver," Hippler said.
Kohberger is being held at the Ada County Jail in Boise, Idaho, and it is not clear where he will serve his sentences. Once Kohberger is transferred into the custody of the Idaho Department of Correction, he will go through an evaluation process to determine where he should be housed, which could take up to two weeks, according to spokesperson Sanda Kuzeta-Cerimagic.
Kohberger's attorney, Anne Taylor, previously said in a statement to Paste BN that his defense team will not make any comments or provide any information, even after the sentencing.
Prosecutors, police and others connected to the case may speak out now that a long-standing gag order has been lifted. Sealed documents in the high-profile case and more information about the case may also soon be made public.
Contributing: Jeanine Santucci, Christopher Cann and Michael Loria