Bryan Kohberger Pleads Guilty | "48 Hours" Podcast | Forensic Files

[Music] Are you pleading guilty because you are guilty? Yes. What a moment. A guilty
plea 962 days in the making in the murder case that horrified the country. Brian Coberger pleaded guilty to the
murders of four University of Idaho students as their anguished loved ones looked on in a packed courtroom in
Boise, Idaho. He did not react with emotion as he communicated with the judge. As to count two, murder in the
first degree as it relates to uh the murder of Madison Mogan, how do you plead guilty or not guilty? Guilty. As
to count three, as it relates to murder in the first degree for the murder of Kaylee Gonzalez, how do you plead guilty
or not guilty? Guilty. As to count four, the uh first-degree murder of Xanna Kernal Kernodal, pardon me, uh a human
being, how do you plead? Guilty or not guilty? Guilty. As to count five, uh the first-degree murder of Ethan Chapen, a
human being, how do you plead guilty or not guilty? Guilty. This is what these four families of the victims had been
longing to hear. An admission of guilt that Coberger had attacked their loved ones in their off-campus home in Moscow,
Idaho. But family members were divided over whether justice was being fully served. Some wanted him tried,
convicted, and sentenced to death. Coberger, who had been a PhD candidate studying criminology at nearby
Washington State University, was arrested on December 30th, 2022. We've spent the last 2 and 1/2 years
awaiting a trial for these monstrous crimes in hopes of finally understanding the full story of what happened that
night and why? What was the motive? Who was Coberger's main target? How did he seem to know exactly where to go once
inside that house? I'm Peter Vans. I've been covering this case for 48 hours since the beginning.
I attended nearby Washington State University. I knew Moscow, Idaho to the point where I could just drive about
anywhere without using a map. These murders really hit home for me. Here at 48 Hours, we were preparing to take you
through the trial week by week. But then news broke on Monday evening that a plea
deal had been struck and Brian Coberger would admit in open court that he was the killer.
So joining me today to review these developments is CBS News legal analyst attorney Mary Fuljaniti. Mary, thanks
for helping us sort all this out. Thanks for having me, Peter. And Mary, just starting at the beginning of today's
hearing, I was struck by Judge Steven Hipler's introduction about outside pressure he was facing as it pertains to
this plea deal. Court is not supposed to and this court will never take into account
public sentiment uh in uh making an opinion regarding uh its judicial decisions in cases.
Court should and I always will make decisions based on where the facts and the law lead me. Period. I have not read
any of the numerous messages nor listen to any of the numerous voicemails that have been sent to me and my staff. Those
have all been forward to security and where appropriate to law enforcement. And there's so much emotion in this
case. Mary, what was your reaction to what the judge had to say? Well, you know, Peter, this case has
captured the nation and the world really, and I think the judge is sending a clear message to the public that all
the calls in the world are not going to impact his decision in this case, and that he's going to rely strictly on the
facts and the evidence and to stop. You know, it's inappropriate. It's time consuming, and it's it's it's taxing on
the people that are working in the courthouse. For the millions of people who have been following this case, all
the attention was of course on the plea deal itself. A plea deal that surprised all of us. Talk about what this
agreement entails. So the defendant pleaded guilty to all five counts included in the indictment,
which were the felony burglary count and four first-degree murder counts. Uh and
with regard to the homicides, all four of them, it was life, a fixed life sentence, which is life without the
possibility to parole with all five counts to run consecutive to each other. In addition, the defendant waved his
right to not only a jury trial, but to appeal his sentence and to even have the court consider any leniency in his
sentence at the time of sentencing. Uh so it it was interesting because I think a lot of people didn't understand is the
court bound by this and and what the court basically said is this is not a binding plea agreement which means he is
not bound by the plea agreement and that he could impose a different sentence a lawful sentence obviously at the hearing
when it comes up. Uh but I think that's probably unlikely in this case that he's
going to stick with what the parties have agreed to uh which has taken a long time to get to. This plea deal seemed to
come out of the blue. We were all prepared for a long trial. Why do you think the defense approached prosecutors
about making a deal? Oh, to save his life, to take the death penalty off the table. And remember, accepting a plea
deal is ultimately not the decision of the defense lawyers, but rather the defendant. And sometimes it's hard to
get to that place until all legal arguments and strategies are thoroughly exhausted. And for all of us who've
lived with this case, the prosecution today stood up and basically what seemed like almost an opening statement laid
out what the prosecution's case was. Here's prosecutor Bill Thompson. Back in March of 2022, when the defendant was
residing at his parents' residence or was residing back in Pennsylvania, his home state, he purchased online a KBAR
knife and sheath with an Amazon gift card that he had purchased shortly prior to the purchase of the knife, sheath,
and sharpener. Jumping ahead, the end of June of that year, uh the defendant, Mr.
Coberger moved from Pennsylvania to Pullman, Washington, which is right across the state line from Moscow,
Idaho, for the purpose of pursuing a PhD in criminal justice at Washington State
University. The state's evidence would indicate that beginning July 9th of 2022,
Mr. Cobberger's phone began connecting to a cell tower that serves the area of the 1122 King Road residence in Moscow,
Idaho. Now, I I will acknowledge for the court and all present that there are many residences in that area. It's a
dense population of mostly college related uh occupants. Between July 9th of 2022 and in November
7th, the defendant's phone connected to that particular tower during late night,
early morning hours, 10:00 p.m. to 4:00 a.m. on approximately 23 times. And then
Thompson described what transpired in the early morning hours of November 13th, 2022.
According to the state's evidence, Coberger's phone left his Pullman residence and was turned off at 2:54
a.m. and remained off until 4:48 a.m. They also obtained video surveillance on the highway that runs between Pullman,
Washington, and Moscow, Idaho, that showed a vehicle matching Coberger's car entering Moscow at 3:02 a.m. and
circling the neighborhood. And at 4:05 a.m., surveillance video showed Coberger's car parked behind the 1122
Kings Road home. The state believes that its evidence would then show that um the
defendant entered the residence of 11:22 through the kitchen sliding door on the
back side of the residence, which is the side of the residence that would uh face
the area above where the defendant's car was parked. defendant entered the residence, went to
the third floor, and with a knife, killed Madison Mogan and Caitlyn Gonzalez. The defendant, as he left that room, for
whatever reason, ended up leaving or the sheath for a KBAR knife was left on the bed next to
Madison Min's body. And I can jump ahead. That sheath was tested by the Idaho State Police Forensic Lab and
single source male DNA was found on the snap of that sheath as well as blood from both Kaye and Madison and other
trace evidence. But it's important to note single source male DNA was on the snap of that cheek.
The state's evidence would show that Zana Kenodal was still awake at this time. in fact had taken a door dash
order not long before this started. Her room was not on the third floor. It was on the second floor on the west side.
As the defendant was either coming down the stairs or leaving, he encountered Zana and he ended up
killing her also with a large knife. Ethan Chapen, Zanna's boyfriend, was asleep in their bedroom, in her bedroom,
and the defendant killed him as well with a large fixed blade line. Each victim suffered multiple wounds. I will
state for the record that there is no evidence there was any sexual component or sexual assault on any of the victims.
I want to make that clear so there's no speculation. There were two other roommates in the
house and they were already asleep. During the course of this, one of those roommates arro awoke, looked out her
door, not knowing what was going on, and saw the defendant who was dressed in black with a black belt cob on, holding
some sort of container in his hand. And she saw him leave the house through the direction of the kitchen where that
sliding door is that I mentioned before. At approximately 4:20 that morning, so this would have been 15 minutes or so
later, Finn's car is seen on a surveillance camera for 1112 King Road, which is immediately next door to the west of
11:22, leaving the area at a high rate of speed. And if the court were to see that
or anybody in this courtroom were to see that, you can see the court the car almost loses control as it makes the
corner, heads north, and then turns to go south on Wenta, which is one of the only ways to get out of that part of
town. The evidence would show that following that, the defendant in his Elantra drove south of Moscow. We know that he
drove on the back roads because there are surveillance cameras on the main highways, Highway 95, that would have
picked up the defendant's car if he'd gone that route and they did not show the defendants's car on that route
during the time. So, we know that he went through a variety of back roads and very rural isolated part of Lake County.
About 4:48 that morning, the defendant's phone comes back on and the evidence will show that that
phone was located south of Moscow, likely at a side road intersection with uh Highway 95. From there, the
defendant's phone activity tracks heading back north towards Pullman, Washington, where the defendant lived.
about 5:26, starting approximately 5:26, various surveillance cameras in Pullman,
Washington, pick up the defendant's vehicle as he enters Pullman from the south and heads north and slightly west
towards his apartment where he arrived at approximately 5:30 in the morning. Later that morning, this still this uh
Sunday, the 13th of November of 2022, Mr. Cobberg's phone returned to the area of King Road. We don't know exactly what
he did, but it returned to that area. It's about 9:00 in the morning, was there for about 10 minutes, and then
returned to his Pullman residence about 9:30 that states evidence will show evidence
taken from the defendant's phone that he took a selfie of himself on his phone in
what appears to be the bathroom of his Pullman apartment with a thumbs up. So, we know there was a lot of evidence,
but we didn't hear anything about motive, Mary. What about that? I know the big question that everybody wants to
to understand in this case. Um, we didn't hear anything about motive. Motive is not an element of the crime.
Uh, and I'm not so sure that the prosecution actually knows at this point even what the motive was. And sometimes
in cases like these in particular where the murders are so gruesome and heinous uh you don't have any sort of black and
white explanation. Uh so I think that's why we probably didn't hear anything along those lines because either they
didn't know it or they felt that it wasn't uh it might be confusing to the factual basis because it's not
necessary. And by the way I had a brief conversation by text message with Christy Gonzalez Kayle's mother
yesterday. in it. She told me that the family asked the prosecutor if they were asking Coberger for more evidence,
including the location of the murder weapon as part of the deal. And according to Christy, the prosecutor
said no. This raises the prospect that families may never know exactly what happened. Imagine living with that for
the rest of your life. Yeah, that's actually, you know, there are so many elements to a case that
sometimes, you know, people will never know. So, it it's hard and I know it's um it's consuming for many of them
because they want the picture filled in so they can fully understand what happened and hopefully put closure and
get some closure out of the case. But that that doesn't always happen. And even if it went to trial, they wouldn't
necessarily have had that closure as well. So unfortunately um in cases like these uh you you need to focus on the
evidence and what the evidence is and and stick with that when it comes to the resolution. But even without a motive,
why not take this to trial? Uh the reason why the prosecution at this late date uh I think decided to discuss a
plea was because the defense reached out to them. I mean, after all the hearings
and the motions and the judge finally denied the continuence, uh, the defense reached out to the to the prosecution
and asked if there was a plea deal, and they would be remissed in not really going through that with them. And
anything can go wrong. I mean, you can have witnesses go sideways. You can have a juror do something that could cause a
mistrial and then restart the whole process again. So, they have to evaluate everything. and in this situation and
here is the defendant willing to plead to everything to all the facts to everything that's included in the
indictment and I think they took all that into consideration and decided that this was the most appropriate and just
thing to do in the circumstances and we've seen a divide among families of the victims. Some are relieved while
others are outraged, feeling betrayed by the prosecution for taking this deal. The Chapens said that they were
attending the hearing in support of the plea deal and the Mogan's family attorney read a statement on their
behalf today also supporting the plea deal. We support the plea agreement 100%. While we know there are some who do not
support it, we ask that they respect our belief that this is the best outcome possible for the victims, their
families, and the state of Idaho. We extend our deep gratitude to the many law enforcement officers and staff who
work tirelessly to obtain the critical evidence that brought justice today. This is something where they want to put
it away. And this is a guarantee. There's no more risk of all that's going to save them a lot of pain and anguish.
On the other side, the Gonzalez family issued a statement saying they are beyond furious at the state of Idaho.
They said the state failed us, calling it a deal with the devil. Kay's father, Steve Gonzaleves, refused to go inside
the courtroom today, but spoke outside to the media before the hearing. He blasted prosecutor Bill Thompson for
negotiating a plea deal. He only negotiated with the murder of our children. That was the only person that
he negotiated with. He didn't give us the call and courtesy to negotiate with us, even pretend. He could have just
pretended and then lied. But he didn't even pretend. He basically said, "Your guys' input isn't needed." The judge
could hear one thought from you that he should remember. What is it? He's going to own this. He's going to
inherit what Thompson did. And he's the only one that can fix it. He's the only one who can make it right. I know it's
an emotional one for some of the victim's families, but it's a call that is solely within the prosecutor's
discretion, weighing not only the victim's interest, but the states and the time, the money, and the consumption
of this case on the court's resources. And there's another reason Kaylee Gonzalez's parents have expressed
outrage. This deal took the death penalty off the table. They wrote on social media that the death penalty is
merely an illusion in the criminal justice system. When available, it serves as a bargaining tool for the
state. A new law in Idaho will go into effect on July 1st, 2026 that will make death by firing squad the state's
primary method of execution. When I spoke to the Gonzalez family over two years ago, they had very strong
opinions about that should he be found guilty of the murders. Oh, firing squad. Absolutely. I think lethal injection is
way too easy. I mean, I've read about it and it's it's evidently very torturous,
but I'm like, yeah, no, I'm not buying it. Evidently, if you feel like you're drowning and whatnot, I don't know. I
mean, yeah, but I think that a firing squad would be pretty terrifying, but nowhere near as terrifying as what our
girls went through. They are understandably very angry and upset and want the defendant to pay the ultimate
price here. And I know the Gonzalez's wish that since the prosecution had all the leverage in this negotiation that
they had that they had included a stipulation that Coberger tell every detail about how this crime was
committed, how he planned, how he carried it out, that he would have to tell that story before he could get the
plea deal. And that breaks their heart that that was not a part of this. Yeah. And no one can compel that. The court
can't compel that. The prosecution can't compel that. I mean, what we do know is
that the judge found that there was sufficient facts and evidence to accept his guilty plea to each of the five
counts. So, after all this, what happens next? Is this case finally over? Not yet. Sentencing is scheduled for July
23rd and we expect on that day the families will be able to have their day in court. they will be able to address
the court and give victim what they call victim impact statements about the pain
and the anguish and the and the torture basically that they have gone through as
a family. Uh and I expect that that'll last the whole day and it's going to be a very emotional day. It's one that you
hope gives some closure and some peace to the families. And it's one that I I I suspect there won't be a dry eye in the
house. And these will be very powerful statements for people like the Gonzalez family. They finally get to say in a
room where they know Brian Coberger can hear them what they think about all of this and they are devastated. So that
will be that will be a compelling day and we will continue to provide updates on this case. Thanks Mary for joining
us. Thank you Peter and thanks to all of you for listening. I'm Peter Vans.

After a surprise plea deal agreement, Bryan Kohberger appeared in court on Tuesday and admitted to killing four University of Idaho students: Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. "48 Hours" correspondent Peter Van Sant and CBS News legal analyst Mary Fulginiti explain the significance of this latest court hearing and how it has affected the families of the victims. While some support the deal, others feel justice hasn't been served. As for motive, this remains a mystery. This episode was recorded on July 2.

Crime. Social justice. Impact. "48 Hours" investigates the most intriguing crime and justice cases that touch on all areas of the human experience including greed and passion. "48 Hours," which premiered in 1988, has developed a rich history of original reporting and impact journalism that has helped exonerate wrongly convicted people, caused cold cases to be reopened and solved, and along the way changed lives.

For video licensing inquiries, contact: licensing@veritone.com

Brief Summary

Brian Coberger pleads guilty to murdering four Idaho students, sparking mixed reactions from victims' families and legal experts.

Key points

Brian Coberger Pleads Guilty. Brian Coberger pleads guilty to the murders of four University of Idaho students.
Families Divided Over Plea Deal. Victim families express mixed feelings about the plea deal, some feeling betrayed.
Sentencing Scheduled. Sentencing for Coberger is set for July 23rd, allowing families to address the court.

Episode highlights

Episode quotes

What a moment. A guilty plea 962 days in the making.

0:05WatchJul 4, 2025

Tension

75/ 100High tension

More from 48 Hours

Solve the Crime

Read a real case one clue at a time, then see how your call held up against the investigators.