Netflix's latest true crime documentary, The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare, has been described by viewers as "a hard watch." The three-episode series investigates the November 2022 stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students in an off-campus house in Moscow, Idaho.
Timeline and Survivors
The murders occurred in the early hours of November 13, 2022. Five roommates and a partner of one student were in the house by 2 a.m. after a night out. Two students, Bethany Funke and Dylan Mortensen, survived by hiding in the same bedroom. A friend told People in February 2023 that the survivors feel significant guilt, saying: "They feel a lot of survivor's guilt. Their friends are gone and they’re still here. It’s been really rough on them. They’re going to be dealing with this for the rest of their lives."
The Victims
The four victims were Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and her boyfriend Ethan Chapin, all close friends. Survivor Dylan recalled hearing a scream and an unfamiliar male voice saying, "It’s okay. I’m going to help you." She locked her door and later joined Bethany in her bedroom. Director Skye Borgman emphasized the documentary's focus on the victims, stating: "When I was able to sit down and talk to the families, both before we started shooting and during the shooting, that’s one thing that they really wanted to get across: They weren’t just victims. They were alive, bright, happy, amazing people."
Arrest and Sentencing
Bryan Christopher Kohberger, a PhD student at Washington State University at the time, was arrested on December 30, 2022, on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. In July 2025, he was sentenced to four consecutive life sentences without parole plus ten years for burglary after pleading guilty. In July 2026, Kohberger filed a handwritten petition to withdraw his pleas and proceed to trial.
