July 2, 2025 – Bryan Kohberger, the 30-year-old former criminology Ph.D. student accused of the brutal 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students, pleaded guilty to all charges on Wednesday in Boise, Idaho, as part of a plea deal to avoid the death penalty. Kohberger admitted to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary for the November 13, 2022, killings of Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin in their off-campus Moscow home.

Under the agreement, Kohberger will receive four consecutive life sentences without parole for the murders and up to 10 years for burglary, waiving his right to appeal. The plea, entered at Ada County Courthouse, came weeks before his trial was set to begin on August 18. Prosecutors cited DNA on a knife sheath, cellphone data, and surveillance footage linking Kohberger to the crime. The deal followed defense losses on motions to exclude evidence and propose alternate perpetrators.

The Goncalves family, vocal advocates for the death penalty, expressed outrage, calling the plea a “deal with the devil” and criticizing prosecutors for inadequate consultation. “We are beyond furious at the State of Idaho,” they posted on Facebook. Other families, like the Chapins, attended the hearing but remained silent. Sentencing is expected in late July.

The case, which gripped the nation, ends a nearly three-year saga that shook Moscow, Idaho. Kohberger’s guilty plea ensures lifelong imprisonment but leaves unanswered questions about motive, as no explanation was required in the deal.