Four years after Idaho murders, photos show how a new generation of students honors the victims

The November 2022 killings remain part of life at the University of Idaho, even for students who were much younger when the tragedy occurred. “We didn’t know them, we were young, but, still I feel like, as a U of I student, that is something that still affects the way we function on campus,” student Henson told Boise State Public Radio. Henson said she planned to visit the campus memorial with her roommate, adding, “Paying your respects is important.”

The university commemorated the fourth anniversary by sharing a tribute to Chapin, Kernodle, Mogen and Goncalves on its official social media accounts. In a November 13 Instagram post, the university encouraged people to remember the four through acts of kindness, recalling the joy they brought to others through conversations, laughter and time spent together. “Let's carry that spirit forward,” the university wrote, urging people to reach out to friends and make time for others.

The Vandal Healing Garden and Memorial, dedicated in August 2024, provides a permanent place for reflection on the University of Idaho campus. Located on MacLean Field, the student-led, community-supported garden features winding pathways, landscaped spaces, a circular pavilion and an illuminated memorial installation. The garden honors all University of Idaho students who died while enrolled, including the four victims of the 2022 murders.

Individual plaques bearing the names of Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves form part of the campus memorial. The photographs show the students' names engraved on metal plaques mounted on wooden surfaces, with flowers placed nearby. The memorial provides a space where current students, families and visitors can honor the four young people whose deaths profoundly affected the university community.

Stacy Chapin, whose son Ethan was among the four victims, supported the university's Week of Remembrance and Kindness in a November 9 Instagram post. “I love this,” she wrote, sharing the university's program and encouraging people to perform four acts of kindness in memory of Xana, Ethan, Madison and Kaylee. She also encouraged people to display four lights of remembrance, such as candles in a window. “Most importantly, be a good human. You never know what someone is going through,” Chapin wrote. The university's program included a basketball tournament, wreath-laying ceremony, remembrance gathering, food and school-supply drives, and opportunities for students to leave messages of kindness.

As the university marked four years since the murders, Bryan Kohberger, the man convicted of killing the four students, was serving four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution. Kohberger pleaded guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary in July 2025, avoiding a trial and the possibility of the death penalty. He was sentenced later that month. In July 2026, Kohberger filed a petition seeking to withdraw his guilty plea, alleging that his former attorneys pressured him into accepting the agreement and failed to disclose potentially helpful evidence. The legal challenge remains pending. A hearing scheduled for December 10 will address his request to disqualify Judge Steven Hippler from the post-conviction proceedings. Kohberger also faces a January 13, 2027, deadline to amend his petition, although his attorney has requested an extension. His convictions and life sentences remain in effect while the challenge proceeds.