Bryan Kohberger's Judge Delivers Passionate Condemnation Of Mass Murderer, Issues Life Sentences

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Judge Steven Hippler delivers remarks at Bryan Kohberger's sentencing.

Transcript

00:00By acknowledging and thanking those that have come here today in support of their loved ones,

00:10and I appreciate your courage and your strength, and I hope that you are able to move on as best

00:19as possible. I thank counsel for the professionalism that they've exhibited throughout this

00:26case. It has been my great honor to preside in this case and to help bring to the extent possible

00:36some resolution and hopefully justice to this case. During the quiet morning hours of November 13,

00:512022, a faceless coward reached the tranquility of six beautiful young people

01:01and senselessly slaughtered them, four of them.

01:07Who committed this unspeakable evil was unknown for several weeks, but due to the killer's incompetence

01:14and outstanding police work by numerous local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies.

01:21The person that slithered through that sliding glass door at 1122 King Road

01:26now stands before the world and this court unmasked.

01:32This unfathomable and senseless act of evil has caused immeasurable pain and loss.

01:42No parent should ever have to bury their child.

01:51This is the greatest tragedy that can be inflicted upon a person.

01:57Parents who took their children to college in a truck filled with moving boxes had to bring them home

02:04in hearses lined with coffins.

02:09The loss this killer inflicted was not just the death of these people's children, siblings,

02:15grandchildren. As we've heard today, it has ripped a hole in their soul, destroying the special part of their very essence.

02:24Any person who is a parent defines themselves foremost as such.

02:35It is their existence and purpose of being.

02:44And it has been stolen from these parents.

02:46None of us have experienced the loss these victims have in the unspeakable way that they have.

03:02And therefore, none of us can nor should we question the way in which they have handled their loss.

03:07Whether that be in private mourning removed as far as possible from this media circus

03:13or in front of a camera demanding retribution with the loudest megaphone.

03:19I've listened intently to the stories and pain that have been shared today

03:24with great awe at the courage and resilience of the surviving family members of those wonderful children.

03:30I've listened also to the surviving roommates, both in person and through their friends.

03:40And I can't think of how, frankly, courageous they have been despite the hell that they have faced

03:47by uncaring people who have come up with all kinds of crazy theories about two kids simply being kids.

04:00The parents, siblings, siblings and other family members who have spoken today

04:07are designated as victims in our legal system.

04:11But going forward, I hope that they can shed that label

04:14as it gives too much power to the evil that condemned them to that role.

04:21They are and should be known as survivors, fighters and foremost as witnesses to the tremendous

04:27lives of value, an unbounded promise of these four young people.

04:34But those speaking today and those who did not speak, but who carry the same burden,

04:38this same loss, now carry forward the memories of these now perpetually young people, these forever children.

04:46These survivors carry the responsibility of ensuring that the voices of these children,

04:54Maddie, Kaylee, Zanna and Ethan, are never forgotten, and the positive impacts that they have

05:02had on so many lives are never minimized, and that the love they shared,

05:06the light that they shined onto others is forever celebrated.

05:12As we sit here today, this case is ending, and we are now certain who committed these unspeakable

05:16acts of evil, but we don't know, and what we may never know is why.

05:24I share the desire expressed by others to understand the why. But upon reflection, it seems to me,

05:34and this is just my own opinion, that by continuing to focus on why, we continue to give Mr. Kohlberger

05:41relevance. We give him agency, and we give him power. The need to know what is inherently not

05:48understandable makes us dependent upon the defendant to provide us with a reason, and that gives him

05:56the spotlight, the attention, and the power he appears to crave. Yet even if I could force him to speak,

06:04which legally I cannot, how could anyone ever be assured that what he speaks is the truth?

06:12Do we really believe, after all of this, he's capable of speaking the truth,

06:17or of giving up something of himself to help the very people whose lives he destroyed?

06:23Rather, I suspect the so-called reason would be dished out in enticing self-serving and aggrandizing

06:30untruthful bits, leaving people wanting more information, more insight, and thus enhancing even

06:36further the power he seeks to hold. Even if we could get truthful insight into his why, I suspect it would

06:45not in any way quench one's thirst for actually understanding why in the first instance. Because

06:51there is no reason for these crimes that could approach anything resembling rationality.

06:58No conceivable reason could make any sense.

07:02In the end, the more we struggle to seek explanation for the unexplainable, the more we try to extract

07:10a reason, the more power and control we give to him. In my view, the time has now come to end Mr.

07:17Kohlberger's 15 minutes of fame. It's time that he'd be consigned to the ignominy and isolation of

07:24perpetual incarceration. I know there has been concern about him collaborating on books or movies

07:31or other media projects, and I truly hope that someone does not stoop to affording him

07:37this spotlight that he desires in the name of cliques, royalties, or profits.

07:44Well, criminal behavioralists should study him away from the spotlight in an attempt to prevent

07:51other would-be killers from acting on their worst impulses. There should be no need for that to

07:57spill over into the public eye. The great Idaho jurist Edward Lodge was known for trying to find

08:04something positive about every person he ever sentenced. And with over a half a century as a

08:10trial judge, that was a lot of people. This was often challenging, and I recall in one case he said that

08:18the best he could come up with was the defendant had good penmanship. Truth be told, I'm unable to

08:25come up with anything redeeming about Mr. Kohlberger because his grotesque acts of evil have buried and

08:31hidden anything that might have been good or intrinsically human about him. His actions have

08:38made him the worst of the worst. Even in pleading guilty, he is giving nothing hinting of remorse or

08:45redemption, nothing suggesting even a recognition or understanding, let alone regret for the pain that

08:52he has caused. And therefore, I will not attempt to speak about him further other than to simply

08:59sentence him so that he is forever removed from civilized society. And accordingly, based upon his

09:07conduct and based upon the record before this court, recognizing the standards that govern this court's

09:13sentencing decisions as set forth in State B2 Hill, I hereby sentence Mr. Kohlberger as follows. On count

09:20one, burglary, 10 years fixed, zero years indeterminate. I also impose a fine of $50,000.

09:31Count two, first degree murder of Madison Mogan. I sentence the defendant to a fixed term of life

09:38imprisonment, a fine of $50,000 and a civil penalty of $5,000 payable to the family of the victim.

09:48On count three, for first degree murder of Kaylee Gonsalves, I sentence the defendant to a fixed term

09:55of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, a fine of $50,000 and a civil penalty of $5,000

10:02payable to the family of the victim. On count four, for the first degree murder of Zanna Karnotl,

10:12I sentence the defendant to a fixed term of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole,

10:18a fine of $50,000 and a civil penalty of $5,000 payable to the family of the victim. On count five,

10:26for the first degree murder of Ethan Chapin, I sentence the defendant to a fixed term of life

10:30imprisonment without the possibility of parole, a fine of $50,000 and a civil penalty of $5,000 payable

10:38to the family of the victim. The sentences on counts one, two, three, four and five shall run consecutively

10:45to one another. Restitution will be left open for 60 days. Defendant will be required to submit a DNA

10:53sample and a right thumbprint impression to the Department of Corrections and comply with the DNA

10:58database act. I remand the defendant to the custody of the Idaho State Board of Corrections

11:04for to be imprisoned in an appropriate facility and execution of the sentence where he will remain

11:09until he dies. Though you have waived your right to appeal, you do have a right to file a notice of

11:16appeal and any such appeal must be filed within 42 days the date of the written judgment which will

11:24be entered shortly hereafter. Though the appeal, you should be aware, may be deemed a violation of

11:33the plea agreement and so I certainly suggest you discuss that with counsel if that is your desire.

11:43I ask the media and public present to allow the families to be escorted out first before they leave.

11:52Again, thank you to everyone for your stories today. I am strengthened by them and I am encouraged by

12:01your humanity and strength and God bless you. We're adjourned.

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