Idaho Murder Victim Defended After Police Include Her Vibrator in Newly Released Crime Scene Photos: 'They Are So Foul for That'

Newly released crime scene photos from the 2022 University of Idaho student murders included a victim's vibrator, and some people on social media are outraged over the images being released to the public.

Among the thousands of pictures in the photo dump unveiled by Idaho State Police on Tuesday, January 20, is one shot from Kaylee Goncalves' room that shows a bright pink silicone device in a basket along with other items, including a Coach wristlet.

People are now criticizing the police for not omitting the photo or redacting it to protect her privacy.

One person on Reddit wrote, "Bro [for real]? Her vibrator?? They are so foul for that, they could've at least put it under a pile of other stuff. They respected their privacy poorly."

Another echoed that sentiment, writing, "It’s so sad to think how much of their privacy was invaded. They should have blurred those out." A third chimed in, "They can't move anything, but they could've redacted it as it's a very personal item."

Someone else commented, "I genuinely don’t understand the outrage here. It’s a crime scene, not a staged apartment tour. Investigators are not allowed to move, hide, rearrange, or tuck away personal items. They document everything exactly as it was found because that’s literally their job."

They added, "You’re okay consuming images of how these victims died, but suddenly drawing the line at a vibrator?"

Another person similarly wrote, "Agreed. I'm seeing people upset because a vibrator was shown. This is a brutal crime scene, by virtue of looking at the images, we are all trespassing into an outrageously intimate aspect of the victims' private lives."

Others pointed out that some of the victims' underwear could be seen in a few photos.

"I’m not sure why we needed to see any of their underwear drawers," someone wrote, while another added, "Were the panty shots really necessary?"

Goncalves' family spoke out against the release of the graphic crime scene photos on Tuesday, January 20, revealing they were barely given a "heads up" about the images being made available for public viewing.

In a post on Facebook, they wrote, "Please be kind & as difficult as it is, place yourself outside of yourself & consume the content as if it were your loved one. Your daughter, your sister, your son or brother. Murder isn’t entertainment & crime scene photos aren’t content."

Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20 and Ethan Chapin, 20, were stabbed to death by Bryan Kohberger at their off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho, on November 13, 2022.

Kohberger is currently serving life in prison after pleading guilty to avoid the death penalty in July 2025.