What did Kaylee Goncalves' sister say? Bryan Kohberger seemingly reacts to victims’ families impact statement

Idaho District Judge Steven Hippler sentenced Bryan Kohberger to life in prison for four consecutive terms on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, multiple outlets reported.

The convicted murderer will remain behind bars without any possibility of parole in his lifetime. Judge Hippler, who described the crimes committed by Kohberger as an “unfathomable and senseless act of evil,” also sentenced him to 10 years in prison for being guilty of one felony count of burglary.

Before the court announced the punishment, the victims’ families gave their statements during the hearing, addressing the defendant. Alivea Steveson (née Goncalves), Kaylee Goncalves' sister, also spoke on Wednesday.

She lambasted Bryan Kohberger for killing Kaylee and her best friend Maddie.

Alivea stated that neither her sister nor her friend was Kohberger’s “to study, to stalk or to silence.” She asserted that both victims had been kind to the defendant had he “approached them in their everyday lives.”

Alivea mentioned fighting for Kaylee and Maddie and continued sharing what she felt (via Today):

“Throughout this entire process, I’ve written my feelings down at every moment, my wishes, my love, my denial, my anger. And as one final act of love, I’d planned to read these thoughts, even jarring and discombobulating and not even making sense.”

Alivea refused to show vulnerability in front of Bryan Kohberger and said (via Today),

“I won't stand here and give you what you want. I won't offer you tears. I won't offer you trembling. Disappointments like you thrive on pain, on fear and on the illusion of power. And I won't feed your beast.”

She further addressed Bryan Kohberger as a “sociopath, psychopath, and murderer.” Alivea continued asking the defendant questions while ridiculing him.

According to the New York Post, during her victim impact statement, Kohberger appeared to smile at Kaylee’s sister before changing his expression.

However, apart from the brief reaction, the defendant seemingly maintained a stoic expression throughout the hearing, per Post.

Alivea Steveson called Bryan Kohberger a coward, said Kaylee would have kicked his “f**** a**”

"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 a*s." Olivia Goncalves received applause at the end of her statement. It was powerful. #BryanKohberger pic.twitter.com/xAAJg1OlIu

— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) July 23, 2025

Kaylee Goncalves’ sister asked several questions in her victim impact statement. She highlighted the errors that the defendant made following the heinous murders of four University of Idaho students. Alivea confronted Kohberger (via Today),

“Did you truly think your Amazon purchase was untraceable because you used a gift card?”

She further asked (via Today),

“Please describe, in detail, the level of anxiety you must have felt when you heard the bearcat pull up to your family home on December 30, 2022.”

Alivea continued,

“You didn’t create devastation. You revealed it, and it’s in yourself. And that darkness you carry, that emptiness, you’ll sit with it long after this is over. That is your sentence, and it was written on the wall long before you ever pled guilty.”

She branded Bryan Kohberger as a coward while asserting (via Today),

“You didn’t win. You just exposed yourself as the coward you are. You’re a delusional, pathetic, hypochondriac loser who thought you were so much smarter than everybody else.”

Alivea Steveson also questioned the defendant’s intelligence and called him a “wannabe.” She said (via Today),

“You thought you were elite because your online IQ test from 2010 told you so. All of that effort seemed important, it’s desperate. There is a name for your condition, though your inflated ego just didn’t allow you to see it: wannabe.”

Kaylee’s sister further called Kohberger basic, insecure, and pathetic, while also claiming that no one was scared, intimidated, or impressed by him.

She concluded her statement by saying (via Today),

“The truth is, you're as dumb as they come, stupid, clumsy, slow, sloppy, weak, dirty. Let me be very clear. Don’t ever try to convince yourself you mattered just because someone finally said your name out loud. I see through you. You want the truth. Here’s the one you’ll hate the most, if you hadn’t attacked them in their sleep, in the middle of the night, like a pedophile, Kaylee would have kicked your f****** a**.”

Like Alivea, family members of other victims also shared their thoughts and addressed Bryan Kohberger. According to CNN, the defendant declined to speak when provided with the opportunity.

Kohberger had accepted the plea deal earlier in July, Fox News reported. He pleaded guilty after the prosecution dropped the death penalty for a life sentence.

Bryan Kohberger has confessed to the 2022 murders of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. pic.twitter.com/8mFsB1SZN8

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) July 2, 2025

Bryan Kohberger was charged with the first-degree murders of four University of Idaho students after he was apprehended in December 2022, more than a month after the tragic incident.

The four victims – Ethan Chapin, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Madison Mogen – aged between 20 and 21, were found dead at their rented residence in Moscow, Idaho.