BREAKING NEWSBryan Kohberger Confesses to Murdering 4 University of Idaho Students, Avoids Death Penalty in Guilty Plea Deal
Bryan Kohberger owned up to the killings of four University of Idaho students.
July 2 2025, Published 2:05 p.m. ET
Bryan Kohberger has confessed to murdering four University of Idaho students in November 2022.
On Wednesday, July 2, the former criminology student, 30, entered a plea deal in an Idaho courtroom more than two years after Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, were brutally stabbed in the girls' off-campus Moscow home.
Bryan Kohberger Pleads Guilty to Idaho Four Murders
The killer confessed to brutally stabbing four young adults in their off-campus home.
The last-minute deal allowed Kohberger to avoid the death penalty. His motive still remains unknown.
Kohberger stood in front of the court to inform the judge he was entering a guilty plea because he was guilty. He proceeded to outwardly confess to the murders of all four victims. The killer also pleaded guilty to a burglary charge.
He initially refused to enter a plea during his arraignment in 2023, causing a judge to enter a not guilty plea on the suspect's behalf.
Bryan Kohberger avoided the death penalty by accepting the plea deal.
As part of the deal, Kohberger will serve four consecutive life sentences for the murder charges and an additional 10 years for the burglary charge. The case is unable to be appealed by the defense.
While it was initially believed Kohberger would never be eligible for parole as part of the plea, the deal does not specifically state so.
If Kohberger did not enter the guilty plea deal, his trial would have kicked off as scheduled on August 18 — and would have put the death penalty on the table if he was convicted of any of the four murder charges in the state of Idaho.
Less than three months before his trial was set to begin, Kohberger’s lawyer Anne Taylor spoke with prosecutors about the possibility of a plea deal last week.
- Bryan Kohberger Accepts Guilty Plea Deal for Brutal Murders of 4 Idaho College Students, Death Penalty Dropped
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- Bryan Kohberger Accepts Guilty Plea Deal for Brutal Murders of 4 Idaho College Students, Death Penalty Dropped
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Murder Victims Families React to Guilty Plea Deal
The off-campus home was demolished after the murders.
News broke on Monday, June 30, that Kohberger was set to enter a guilty plea deal on Wednesday, prompting a family of one of the victims to express their frustration online.
"It's true! We are beyond furious at the State of Idaho. They have failed us. Please give us some time. This was very unexpected. We appreciate all your love and support. #heartbroken #kayleejade4ever," the Goncalves family said in a statement.
"Kaylee Jade Goncalves, we love you, baby. You deserved better than this justice system!" they added in a follow-up post.
The murder victims' families had split opinions on the case not heading to trial.
Madison's dad, Ben Mogen, and Ethan's parents, Stacy and Jim Chapin, publicly expressed their approval of the plea deal. Xana's dad, Jeff Kernodle, wanted the case to go to trial.
"The plea deal the prosecution has proposed is one that punishes the perpetrator of this horrific crime, protects the public from further harm and allows all of us who knew and loved these four young people the time to grieve without the anxiety of the long and gruesome trial, years of appeals and potential mistrials along the way," the Mogen family declared in a message.
