Idaho murder victim’s family vows to face accused killer Bryan Kohberger in court
The heartbroken family of University of Idaho murder victim Kaylee Goncalves vowed Friday to face alleged killer Bryan Kohberger in court — as his lawyers filed a motion to delay a hearing next week.
The father of Goncalves, one of four students stabbed to death in a gruesome attack near campus in November, said he’s ready to confront Kohberger, 28, to ensure he “doesn’t get away” with murder.
“I can’t wait to see the evidence … And then I’m gonna bring it,” Steve Goncalves told ABC News Friday. “And he’s gonna realize that this … is the family that’s gonna make sure he doesn’t get away with it.”
The slain 21-year-old’s family will attend a preliminary hearing for the accused killer scheduled for June 26 — despite previously being “overwhelmed” by the sight of him, Kaylee’s mom, Kristi Goncalves, told the station.
“I think a big thing is for us to go in strong, united as a family,” she said. “I have no idea what to expect, I have no idea what we’re going to hear. … But I know that I’ve got my son, and my daughter will be there, and my sister, and my husband.”
She plans to avoid the courtroom when potentially disturbing evidence is presented.
“I’m not going to scar myself,” she said. “I have visions of my own that, you know, I have to deal with.”
Though she was overcome with emotion the first time she saw Kohberger in court, thoughts of her daughter’s last moments have inspired her to demand justice, she said.
“My daughter saw him face to face and in a very different light than we saw him, sitting there [in court], looking very meek,” she said.
Earlier this week, Kohberger’s lawyers filed a motion to delay a May 22 media gag order hearing, arguing that an expert witness won’t be available on that date, according to the Moscow-Pullman Daily News.
“Because the media coverage of this case has been intense, and because Mr. Kohberger plans on providing expert testimony on its damaging effects, Mr. Kohberger will require additional time and will not be prepared for such a hearing on May 22, 2023,” the motion states.
Wendy Olson, an attorney representing a coalition of media outlets, claimed the gag order violates press freedoms and causes “irreparable harm” with each passing day.
Goncalves, 21, and three other students — Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, and 21-year-old Madison Mogen — were killed in a brutal attack inside the girls’ rented off-campus home in the early hours November 13.
Kohberger, a doctoral student in criminology at nearby Washington State University, was arrested on Dec. 30 after a six-week manhunt and charged with the quadruple murder.
During the interview with ABC News, Kaylee’s brother, Steven, also addressed rumors that Kohberger attended a party at his sister’s home.
“You’re not having just some random stranger at your party,” Steven said.
He believes someone would have noticed he was out of place and he would have been “removed from the party,” he said.
In February, the University of Idaho announced that the home where the four students had been killed will be torn down.
“I’m glad that somebody else isn’t gonna live in it,” Kristi Goncalves said Friday.
She added, “It’s going to be very multifaceted for me, honestly, because my daughter lived in that home. She lived a happy life in that home, she loved living there with her friends.”
“For them to say, ‘No, we don’t want family in here, we don’t want anybody living in here. It’s got to be torn down’ — it’s definitely not happy.”