The darkness of November 13, 2022, descended upon a house on King’s Road, forever altering the lives connected to the University of Idaho. Newly unsealed court records now paint a chillingly detailed picture of the violence that unfolded within those walls, revealing the horrific extent of the injuries sustained by the four young victims.
A bloodstain pattern analyst meticulously reviewed autopsy materials, crime scene photographs, and lab results, preparing to present their findings in court. The analysis reveals the brutal reality of the attack, quantifying the devastating wounds inflicted upon each student.
Kaylee Goncalves endured approximately 38 sharp-force wounds. Madison Mogen suffered 28. Xana Kernodle sustained a staggering 67, and Ethan Chapin, 17. These numbers, stark and unsettling, represent individual lives extinguished with unimaginable cruelty.
The victims remained within the confines of their bedrooms, offering a grim tableau to investigators. There was no indication any of them left the house after the initial attack began in the early morning hours, trapping them within a nightmare.
Goncalves and Mogen were found side-by-side in Mogen’s third-floor bedroom, their bodies still beneath a comforter. A chilling detail emerged: no blood was detected on the soles of their feet, suggesting they were unable to move after being mortally wounded.
Ethan Chapin lay on the bed in Kernodle’s second-floor room, partially covered with bedding. Like Goncalves and Mogen, he showed no blood on his socks, indicating he too was incapacitated almost immediately.
Xana Kernodle’s fate differed tragically. She was discovered on the floor of her bedroom, and investigators found evidence of movement after the attack. Bloodstains on the soles of her bare feet revealed she had walked within the room, a desperate and final act.
These harrowing details surfaced following Bryan Kohberger’s guilty plea. In July, he admitted to four counts of first-degree murder, accepting a plea agreement that spared him the death penalty in exchange for four consecutive life sentences without parole.
Kohberger is now confined within the walls of the Idaho Maximum Security Institution, a stark symbol of justice served, yet unable to fully erase the profound loss and enduring pain felt by a community shattered by senseless violence.
