The sister of slain University of Idaho student Ethan Chapin has shared the final text message she received from him just hours before he and three others were brutally murdered in their off-campus home in November 2022.
Ethan’s sister, Maizie Chapin, recalled the moment in the newly released Amazon Prime documentary One Night in Idaho: The College Murders, which details the hours leading up to the horrific attack that claimed the lives of Ethan, 20, his girlfriend Xana Kernodle, 20, and friends Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves, both 21.
On the night of Nov. 12, 2022, Maizie had taken Ethan as her date to a sorority formal. “Some of Ethan’s friends were going, and he wasn’t, so I asked him to come with me,” she explained in the docuseries. “It was super fun.”
After the event, Maizie decided to stay behind and go to bed while others continued the night. Ethan continued texting her late into the evening. “He kept texting me, ‘Maizie, come hang out.’ I was already asleep and didn’t respond,” she said. “The last one said, ‘I love you,’ which was weird, because we don’t say that to each other.”
By morning, Ethan and the others were dead—stabbed to death inside their rental home in a targeted 4 a.m. home invasion.
Kohberger Pleads Guilty
Two and a half years later, on July 1, 2025, 30-year-old Bryan Kohberger formally confessed to the quadruple murder as part of a plea agreement to avoid the death penalty. In his written confession, he admitted to planning the attack and breaking into the home with the intention of killing the students.
During his July 2 court appearance, Ethan’s mother, Stacy Chapin, was present to witness Kohberger’s in-person guilty plea.
“It was cold and calculated,” she told TODAY. “It felt like hearing an automated message. No emotion, no remorse. Nothing.”
Mixed Reactions from Families
While the Goncalves family has expressed frustration over the plea deal, the Chapins and Mogen families ultimately supported it, acknowledging it brought a long-awaited sense of closure.
“We’re ready to move on,” said Jim Chapin, Ethan’s father. “It’s been nearly two and a half years. It’s over.”
Stacy Chapin initially wanted the death penalty, but after discussions with prosecutors, the family agreed the plea deal would spare their other children from having to testify.
“He’s locked away forever,” she said. “There’s no appeal process. No more uncertainty. And the kids who were subpoenaed no longer have that weight on them.”
No Trial, No Appeals
Under the plea agreement, Kohberger will serve four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole, along with an additional 10 years. He also waived his rights to appeal or request a reduced sentence in the future. His trial was previously scheduled to begin in August.
The plea brings an end to one of the most closely watched true crime cases in recent years, as families and the Moscow, Idaho, community begin the slow process of healing.
