Kaylee Goncalves’ Sister Details Bryan Kohberger’s “Rage” in Court

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Kaylee Goncalves’ sister delivered her impact statement amid feelings of dark energy. 

After communicating with Bryan Kohberger in court, Alivea Goncalves explained her thoughts and feelings as she defended her sister Kaylee and other Idaho victims, including Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin.

During my interview with NewsNation on July 24, I emphasized that I did my best to keep eye contact, and let me clarify, it felt like no one was actually there.

In her address, Alivea pointed out that despite no one expressing fear of Kohberger following his actions, she emphasized the chilling nature of encountering an individual who committed such a horrific crime.

She conveyed a feeling of alarm. Her body signaled ‘Flee! Depart! This is dangerous. This isn’t a human.’ The closest analogy I can provide for you is as if she had encountered an extraterrestrial being. Since behind that, there was no trace of humanity.

Despite maintaining a stoic demeanor in court, the 29-year-old’s eyes betrayed raw anger and fury as family members and friends of the victims shared moving testimonies about their lost loved ones.

Throughout, I sensed that intense gaze,” Alivea said. “It didn’t let up. What I recall most vividly is a sense of ‘He’s furious. It’s an anger I’ve never encountered personally.’

In those moments leading up to her speech, Alivea chose to express solidarity for the lives that were tragically cut short, rather than focusing on her personal feelings.

The main intention behind my speech was to restore power to Kaylee, Maddie, Xana, and Ethan,” she continued. “I aimed to provide them with a heroic moment, something I believe they truly deserve.

Alivea stated that her primary goal was to regain authority over Kohberger, who recently agreed to a plea bargain that removed the possibility of a death sentence in his conviction, subsequently accepting four consecutive life imprisonments and monetary penalties for his offenses.

Alivea confirmed, ‘Every word I spoke was absolutely correct.’ It accurately depicted his character and their relationship,” she added.

For more on how the Idaho murder case unfolded, keep reading…

The individuals mentioned – Kaylee Goncalves (aged 21), Madison Mogen (also 21), Xana Kernodle (20 years old), and Ethan Chapin (her boyfriend, aged 20) – were all students at the University of Idaho. They resided together in an apartment off the university campus.

On November 12, 2022, Goncalves and Mogen spent their evening at a sports bar close by, while Kernodle and Chapin attended the latter’s fraternity party. By 2 a.m. on November 13th, all four roommates and Chapin had returned to their shared three-story rental house.

Goncalves, a senior studying general studies at the College of Arts and Humanities, was due to graduate in December. After graduation, she planned to move to Austin, Texas for a job at a marketing company, as her friend Jordyn Quesnell shared with The New York Times.

As a marketing enthusiast, I’ve been inseparable from my buddy Goncalves ever since our sixth-grade days. Come graduation, I was all set to relocate to Boise, a fact that my family friend, Jessie Frost, graciously shared with The Idaho Statesman.

At that point, Kernodle was a junior studying marketing, as reported earlier. She and Chapin, a senior majoring in recreation, sport, and tourism management, had been in a relationship since the spring, according to their neighbor, Ellie McKnight, to NBC News.

Two residents, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, were at home during the reported murders. Text messages that were made public on March 6, 2025 reveal that Mortensen and Funke attempted to reach their fellow roommates on November 13 after Mortensen spotted a masked individual moving around inside the house, as suggested by documents acquired by TopMob News.

“No one is answering,” Mortensen texted Funke at 4:22 a.m. “I’m rlly confused rn.”

23 a.m., she inquired again, “Are you awake?

11:58 a.m. saw a 911 call being made, as reported by TopMob News after receiving supplementary information. In this call, a woman identified as A1 in the transcript shared the ongoing circumstances with the operator, explaining that Kernodle was found unconscious.

She mentioned that one of the roommates is still unconscious from being intoxicated last night and won’t wake up, as reported over the phone,” or

“The roommate who was extremely drunk last night is still asleep and hasn’t woken up yet, according to what she said on the phone,” or

“She stated that one of their flatmates is still passed out from being drunk last night and hasn’t come to yet, as per her phone conversation.”

Regarding the second part: “They saw some man in their house last night.”

“Last night, they claimed to have spotted an unknown male inside their residence.

Bryan Kohberger, who is currently facing charges for four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary, was pursuing a doctoral degree at Washington State University. Approximately one month after the bodies of Gonclaves, Mogen, Kernodle, and Chapin were found, Kohberger was apprehended in Monroe County, Pennsylvania on December 30. He was subsequently transferred to Idaho on January 4, 2023.

It was discovered that DNA matching him was present on a knife sheath abandoned at the crime scene, as reported in June 2023 court documents by NBC News, which links him to the murders.

When the DNA didn’t correspond with anyone in the FBI database, authorities resorted to public ancestry websites to generate a list of possible suspects based on the court filings. Upon discovering that Kohberger had traveled to his parents’ home in Monroe County, local investigators then sifted through their trash and identified DNA links between it and the one found at the crime scene.

Currently, no specific reason for the attack has been disclosed, as a court order prohibits those closely linked to the case from making public statements. Nevertheless, certain unveiled documents offer glimpses into their initial lines of defense. (NBC News report)

Kohberger’s legal team has requested to eliminate the possibility of capital punishment in court documents, obtained by TopMob News, stating that Kohberger has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). They argue that imposing the death penalty on someone with ASD would breach the Eighth Amendment’s ban on “inhumane and excessive punishment.

In simpler terms, the defense asserted that Kohbereger shows signs of inflexible thought patterns, fixation on certain subjects, fragmented understanding of information, difficulty anticipating future events, and limited self-awareness regarding his actions and feelings.

As Mr. Kohberger has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), he struggles to behave in ways society deems typical. This unfortunate circumstance raises significant concerns that he may face the death penalty not for his guilt, but due to his disability.

At first, Judge Kohberger entered a plea of not guilty for him since he didn’t speak during the May 2023 court hearing about the first-degree murder charges. His trial was initially scheduled for October 2, 2023, but he chose to give up his right to a prompt trial in August 2023.

The start of his trial, initially planned for Ada County over 300 miles away from Latah County where the murders occurred, has been scheduled for August 11, 2025.

Previously, Latah County Judge John Judge decided to approve the transfer request from Kohberger’s defense team back in September 2024, as he believed there could be bias in the case if it continued to be tried in Latah County due to potential prejudice.

In the trial at hand, Judge Steven Hippler refused the defense’s plea to exclude crucial DNA evidence, as well as cell phone and email records, security camera footage, previous Amazon transactions, and DNA findings.

The trial for Kohberger’s murder case was unexpectedly halted on June 30, 2025, when he decided to accept a plea bargain offered by the prosecution. In doing so, Kohberger consented to admit his guilt for four counts of murder and one count of burglary, relinquish his right to appeal, and request a less severe prison term.

On July 2, 2025, he admitted his guilty plea in court, affirming “yes” when the judge questioned whether he intentionally, illegally, deliberately, with planning, and with harmful intent killed all four of the victims.

On March 2025, a selfie taken by Kohberger the day after the murders was presented. In this photo, he stands in front of a shower with a thumbs up gesture, which matches the description given by a witness called “D.M.” in court documents. This witness stated that the suspect had “bushy eyebrows.

In an interview on Fox and Friends, Steve Gonclaves, the father of victim Kaylee, subsequently commented on the image, referring to it as a “trophy.

As a diligent observer, I’m well-aware of the sequence of events. It was shortly after his arrival back at the crime scene that it dawned on him – no one had dialed 911 yet.

Translated more casually, the statement could be rephrased as: “He sees that as a small victory, a token reminding him, ‘I managed to slip through unnoticed.’

2025 Dateline documentary on the murders features an account by a former classmate of Kohberger’s, who recounted a “strange” message she got from him following their encounter at a party.

Holly shared that she felt slightly obliged to talk to him, given he appeared somewhat uncomfortable. This seemed fitting for a PhD student, who was likely the only one unfamiliar at the gathering, perhaps making an effort to socialize and form connections.

The following day, Holly said she received a text from him, which she described as overly formal. 

Hey there, it seems like we discussed hiking trips yesterday,” Bryan’s text from July 10, 2022 at 1:19 p.m., stated according to Dateline. “I really appreciate that kind of outing, so do keep me updated. Cheers!

In another part of the Dateline documentary, it was discovered that Kohberger’s web history contained inquiries about Ted Bundy, Britney Spears’ song “Criminal,” and the phrase “Murders at the University of Idaho.

In a court hearing held on July 2, 2025, I chose to plead guilty to the charges against me, which include the murders of Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle, and Chapin, as well as one count of burglary, all that occurred in Idaho. This decision was made as part of a plea bargain to avoid the death penalty.

When Judge Hippler asked Kohberger if he intentionally, illegally, and carefully planned and committed each murder with harmful intent, he answered affirmatively for all instances.

By accepting the plea bargain, Kohberger has relinquished his ability to challenge the verdict or request a less strict prison term, as stated by Hippler.

Despite both the Goncalves and Kernodle families objecting to the plea bargain that removed the death penalty option, Thomas Kohberger was formally sentenced to spend the rest of his life in prison on July 23, 2025.

The judge, Judge Hippler, ordered Kohberger to serve four life sentences in a row, without any chance for parole for each first-degree murder charge, plus a $50,000 fine and a $5,000 payment to the families of the victims for each count. Additionally, he received a 10-year sentence and was fined $50,000 for the burglary charge, as well.

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2025-07-25 16:17