Cara Northington, the mother of Xana Kernodle — one of the four University of Idaho students murdered in 2022 — says time spent in jail helped her find the strength to forgive her daughter’s killer, Bryan Kohberger.
Speaking at a faith-based event titled Journey of Forgiveness at Altar Church in Coeur d’Alene, Northington shared her emotional journey of grief, recovery, and forgiveness.
“I don’t hate Bryan Kohberger,” she said during the panel discussion, according to the Idaho Spokesman. “I do not fear you or let you have space in my head anymore.” She acknowledged that despite his actions, Kohberger was “still made in God’s image.”
Northington revealed that she was arrested on a probation violation shortly after her daughter’s death and spent 10 months in jail. During that time, she overcame a decades-long struggle with drug addiction, reconnected with her faith, and found peace through reading the Bible. “The Lord just had me surrender it all. And I did, and I haven’t gone back,” she said.
Her spiritual and personal transformation, she said, brought her an “overwhelming joy” and led her to a place of forgiveness.
Remembering her daughter, Northington described Xana as a “beautiful soul” who “lit up a room” and had a way of making others feel special. Xana was killed alongside her boyfriend Ethan Chapin, and her roommates Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen in November 2022.
Bryan Kohberger was sentenced to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole in July, after accepting a plea deal that spared him the death penalty. He is currently incarcerated at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Kuna.
Authorities noted that Xana fought back during the attack, sustaining defensive wounds on her hands.