“I respectfully decline” - Bryan Kohberger declines to speak following victim impact statement

Bryan Kohberger, the man found guilty of murdering four University of Idaho students and the bodies were found inside their off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho, had his last chance to speak before being sentenced to life in a prison cell.

Instead of explaining, apologizing, or even giving an insight into his reasoning, the 30-year-old criminology student said only three words: “I respectfully decline.”

For nearly three years, the country has been captivated by the 2022 killings of Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, and Ethan Chapin, a crime that shocked a small college town and left true-crime enthusiasts speculating.

"If you hadn't attacked them in their sleep in the middle of the night like a pedophile, Kaylee would have kicked your f***ing ass." Olivia Goncalves received applause at the end of her statement. It was powerful. #BryanKohberger pic.twitter.com/xAAJg1OlIu

— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) July 23, 2025

But as Bryan Kohberger stood silently before the families in court, his intention behind the killings and several other questions remain unanswered. According to The New York Post, his silence was all the more striking next to the raw emotion of victims’ loved ones, who spent hours delivering statements. Parents called their children bright and kind, full of promise.

Survivors described the horror of that night, which included Dylan Mortensen, who trembled as she described how she had seen Kohberger wearing a ski mask. Some, like Xana Kernodle’s aunt, even extended forgiveness, asking for answers (BBC).

"You've altered my every waking moment... You're a textbook case of insecurity. You are not profound, you're pathetic," Kaylee's mother, Kristi Goncalves, told Kohberger.

A look into the court proceedings and Bryan Kohberger's link to his victims

Legal professionals indicate Kohberger's silence was deliberate. He had secured life in prison without parole by agreeing to a plea deal and avoiding the death penalty, but the deal did not require him to explain his actions.

Judge Steven Hippler cautioned that there was no assurance of truth even if he had answered all the questions.

"Even if I could force him to speak, which legally I cannot, how could anyone ever be assured that what he speaks is the truth?" he said.

Idaho District Judge Steven Hippler on Bryan Kohberger before sentencing him to life in prison: "Truth be told, I am unable to come up with anything redeeming about Mr. Kohberger, because his grotesque acts of evil have buried anything that might have been good or intrinsically… pic.twitter.com/0hc1phc0QY

— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) July 23, 2025

The judge noted that fixating on Bryan Kohberger’s motivations had simply given him “relevance” he didn't deserve.

"Do we really believe after all this that he is capable of giving up the truth, or some piece of himself to help the people whose lives he destroyed in the first place?" Steven Hippler added.

On the other hand, investigators found no connection between Bryan Kohberger and the victims, no social media connections, and no past encounters. Why he chose these students to murder is still a mystery, leading to speculations as to whether the deaths were due to a bizarre intellectual obsession or at random.