Here's what Xana Kernodle's family said during Bryan Kohberger ID sentencing
BOISE, Idaho - Bryan Kohberger, who confessed to the November 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students, was sentenced on Wednesday, July 23.
Bryan Kohberger (left) and Idaho murder victims Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, Ethan Chapin and Kaylee Goncalves (right).
During his sentencing hearing, the parents of the victims – Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20 – delivered emotional impact statements directly to Kohberger.
Here's what Xana Kernodle's family said during the Bryan Kohberger sentencing
On July 23, 2025, both of Xana Kernodle's parents testified at Bryan Kohberger's sentencing hearing. Additionally, Xana's sister and stepdad delivered powerful statements.
Jazzmin Kernodle (Xana's sister)
"I just want to say thank you to everyone who's been involved in this and for all the hard work and dedication you guys have put into this. I just wanted to thank everyone for the support and just making many friends around – through this time.
"I went back and forth on whether to speak today because the truth is you don't deserve power over my feelings, my words, or me. In the end, I realized this moment isn't about you. It's about justice for Xana, Ethan, Kaylee, and Maddie. It's about honoring the beautiful people they were – and still are, in God's eyes.
"On November 13th, 2022, a piece of my heart was ripped away. There's no way to ever fully describe the weight of losing my sister, my best friend. No sentence or punishment will ever come close to the justice Xana, Ethan, Kaylee, and Maddie deserve. Xana was everyone's best friend. She was kind, she was funny. She was a gift to each person she was able to make an impact on. Xana is someone I turned to when I needed direction or advice.
"Although I am her older sister, I often found myself looking up to her. She had a radiant energy that everyone loved, and she always knew the right way to approach a problem. She knew how precious and special life was, and she truly did live every day to the fullest. Yet, her story was cut short by an act of evil.
"I believe in a God whose justice is not bound by this courtroom. I find peace knowing that judgment ultimately belongs to Him. For your sake, I hope one day you feel the full weight of what you did. I hope you take accountability. I hope that you truly experience the guilt, and you surrender yourself to Jesus Christ because no punishment on this earth can ever compare to the isolation and pain of eternal separation from God. Xana deserved more. They all did.
"But I come here to say this. I am strong. I am brave. I'm a fighter just like Xana. And you don't get to control how I move forward or what I believe. I walk with the comfort of knowing I will see my sister again. Xana didn't get the future she deserved. She won't be the maid of honor at my wedding, the cool aunt to my future children. I'll never hear her laugh or see her light up a room ever again, but I will carry her with me for the rest of my life. I will live in her honor, fight to be the best kind of woman and someone she's proud of to make sure the world never forgets who she was.
"Xana's story doesn't end with what was taken from her. It lives through the love she gave, the people she touched, and the legacy our family will protect. Her light still shines, and her voice will echo louder than this pain. You didn't take that from us, and you never will."
Featured
Here's what Kaylee Goncalves' family said during Bryan Kohberger ID sentencing
Bryan Kohberger, who confessed to the November 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students, was sentenced on Wednesday, July 23.
Jeff Kernodle (Xana's dad)
"I just want to say, before I start, I'm Xana's dad, Jeff Kernodle. It's been a hard road down, you know, because she's gone, and... I wanna thank everybody under their families that's speaking so far – spoke about things. I agree with everything they have to say. It all comes back to a lot of the same things that I've had to deal with and we as a family have had to deal with.
"And that brings me to the basis of what I'm gonna talk about a little bit – on my way up here, flying up here on the plane, about halfway through the flight [there was this] little girl calling out for her dad. "Hey dad, dad, dad" and then in my mind – I was kind of half asleep, it was dark on the plane – I heard Xana calling out for me like she did, you know, back when she was a little five-year old. And those times were hard.
"It was chaotic, but we always had something to work towards that was in a positive direction… compared to right now, which is necessarily not as positive as that for sure. And I know I'm missing a lot. My life's been changed, and then Xana had a great impact on me. And the impact was when she was gone, I realized how important she was and what she really did for me – influenced me… was way beyond what I ever thought.
"She'd call me up on the weekends, check on me, see who's with me. She's like... accountability to your youngest daughter. And that really made a big difference. It made me really think about things and what it's all about, you know? That's the things that I miss the most is those calls on the weekends, the calls at 11 at night. "What's going on? You wanna meet my friend?" You know, whoever she was, a couple of her friends, I'd meet them, talk to them. And she always did that. And it's pretty cool. Pretty cool, I really miss that.
"She made a big impact on me, on other people, her family, but the impact that she made is so extensive on what happened here, and it goes so far. People from everywhere in the world are following things, and Xana has made a difference in their lives. Countless people saw that. They might not even know her, they never knew anything about her. It's what they see, and they just start – they just love her and say how they wish she could have been their friend, you know… could have been their friend, could have hung out, and it's like, this is just a blessing. This is who the whole kid was and definitely was a big blessing in my life. And so is Jazzmin. And, basically, you know, we worked hard to do the things we did.
"You know, through the times they were growing up. And through those times, I realized that I wanted both of them to graduate college, and that'd be the ultimate thing for them to do to prepare for the real world. Then It came back to me, Xana didn't get to finish college. She had it all figured out.
"And this all came back to me when I was there and that little girl was on the plane doing that. It's like, where I was going, what I was going here for, and then I just realized and thought to myself about the wonderful life that she had, and we had together and we, you know, I still could have with Jazzmin, but that's the part that really counted. It's the parts that really counted, it's those memories. And those are what I have left. The memories with her and the ones I can make with her, and the life I can go on with now, which is what she wants, and… I say that in present tense, because that's what she wants, because I've been told that, you know.
"I've had countless ways that she's out there and has a way to communicate, which I'm very grateful for. That goes to say, the impact of what happened to them, all four kids, goes so much further than not just me, the parents, the families, the community.
"It goes so far because a lot of kids in the colleges, just for an example, they lock their doors now. The door wasn't locked in the back. Penn State or wherever it was, all the colleges I know that have heard, they all locked their doors now. So maybe the impact that it's gonna make is gonna help out and maybe protect some people. Having this outreach and having the influence of what these kids, what happened to these kids did.
"All I know is I was seven miles away when it happened, and she wasn't feeling that good. It was 11:30, and I almost went over to Xana's to say – and I would have been sitting right there on that couch – and you would've had to deal with me, so they would have had a chance, and I regret that, and regret not going. But the reason why I didn't is because Xana said, don't be drinking and driving. You have to rent a car, don't drink and drive, you know, the week before that. So she was – she would have been mad at me to do that. But I really wish I would have drunk and drove, because they would have had a chance. All four of them.
"At this point, I just have to go on. We're going to go on with everything and make things better in my life because that's what it's all about. I've got closure in things, and the part that we miss is Xana – her influence, her smile, the things that she did. And we have memories left, the great memories, and she just wants us to make more memories and not be sad or upset or shocked or taken for that. And that's what we're going to do. We just have to. That's all I got."
Featured
Here's what Madison Mogen's parents said during Bryan Kohberger ID sentencing
Bryan Kohberger, who confessed to the November 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students, was sentenced on Wednesday, July 23.
This is a developing story.
The Source: Information in this story comes from Bryan Kohberger's sentencing hearing on July 23, 2025.
MORE NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE
Witness captures video of plane crashing into water near Mukilteo
Fire truck thief goes on rampage in Everett damaging 14 vehicles
Idaho hiker mistaken for Travis Decker tells all
2 men arrested in $600k ATM robbery spree across WA
Gallery: Capitol Hill Block Party rocks Seattle streets
To get the best local news, weather and sports in Seattle for free, sign up for the daily FOX Seattle Newsletter.
Download the free FOX LOCAL app for mobile in the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for live Seattle news, top stories, weather updates and more local and national news.