Idaho Murder Victims' Families Say It All

The two surviving roommates and families of the four Idaho murder victims gave their victim impact statements on Wednesday, and Kaylee Goncalves' family members are attracting attention for how strong and biting their words were. As Megyn Kelly put it on X, "Holy mother of God - Kaylee's sister." CNN notes Kaylee's father, Steve, physically shifted the lectern so that he could directly address Bryan Kohberger and the judge didn't stop him. The rest of the family spoke in the same manner. The New York Times reports Kohberger wasn't entirely unflinching as he listened, in that he "showed signs of discomfort. His leg jostled and his jaw slid, as if he were grinding his teeth." Standout comments:

• A friend read an impact statement from surviving roommate Bethany Funke: "I hated and still hate that they are gone, but for some reason, I am still here, and I got to live. I still think about this every day. Why me? Why did I get to live and not them? For the longest time, I could not even look at their families without feeling sick with guilt."
• Surviving roommate Dylan Mortensen spoke publicly for the first time: "I was barely 19 when he did this," Mortenson said. "We had just celebrated my birthday at the end of September. I should have been figuring out who I was. I should have been having the college experience and starting to establish my future. Instead, I was forced to learn how to survive the unimaginable."

• From Maddie Mogen's stepfather, Scott Laramie: "This world was a better place with her in it. Karen and I were ordinary people, but we lived extraordinary lives because of Maddie."
• From Maddie's father, Ben Mogen: "Maddie was my only child that I ever had. She's the only great thing I ever did and the only thing I was ever proud of. I thought we would have the rest of our lives together. ... I'll never be able to replace her. I wrote a bunch of stuff. I don't, I just don't know what to say right now. I just missed her so much."
• From Kaylee Goncalves' father, Steve: "Today, we are here to finish what you started. We are here to prove to the world that you picked the wrong families, wrong state, the wrong police officers, the wrong community. ... We had your white car on camera. We knew from the very beginning we had you. ... You were that careless, that foolish, that stupid. Master degree? You're a complete joke."
• From Kaylee's older sister, Alivea: The courtroom applauded as she finished a ravaging of Kohberger, saying, "If you hadn't attacked them in their sleep ... Kaylee would have kicked your f---ing ass."
• From Kaylee's mother, Kristi: "A dead killer doesn't kill again, so while I'm disappointed the firing squad won't get to take their shots at you, I'm confident that the men in prison will have their way with you in more ways than one. You will finally get what you wanted, physical touch."
• From Xana Kernodle's stepfather, Randy Davis: "I love you all and I feel your pain," he said to the other victims' families, noting they likely wouldn't all be in the same room again. To Kohberger, "You're gonna go to hell … you're evil ... you took our children … you are gonna suffer, man. Go to hell."
• From Xana's dad, Jeff, who said he was staying just seven miles away from his daughter that night and was going to go to the house. Xana told him not to drink and drive. He expressed regret for not going. "You would have had to deal with me. They would've had a chance."
• NBC News reports Ethan Chapin's parents told them they have found "big-time closure" and would not attend the sentencing, preferring instead to spend the day with their other children.