If you have been following the Idaho 4 killings closely, the tragedy that took four University of Idaho students back on Sunday, Nov. 13, 2022, you no doubt have heard the names Dylan and Bethany (pictured first and third L-R in the photo). 
Dylan and Bethany are the two young female survivors from that horrific scene that claimed the lives of Kaylee Goncalves, Maddie Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. Goncalves and Mogen were found deceased in Mogen’s third floor bedroom, while Kernodle and Chapin were located in the former’s bedroom on the second floor.
The two survivors were home at the time of the event. Dylan reportedly in a second floor bedroom and Bethany on the ground floor.
It is estimated that the event happened somewhere between 4:05 a.m. and 4:20 a.m. Yes, in such a short span of time, four young lives were tragically ended.
So, how is it that Dylan and Bethany escaped with no injuries and lived to tell about it?
Those following the case closely know that a 911 call for the Moscow Police Department was not made until 11:58 a.m. Some 7-8 hours passed from when the tragedy began to when authorities were alerted of a supposed unconscious individual in the home at 1122 King Road (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_-fAgUSIh8).
We also know from the PCA that was given out a few months back by police that Dylan reportedly saw a figure clad in black and wearing a mask go right past her on the second floor, exiting the home through the kitchen slider door by the patio. Dylan, a Boise resident, was reportedly so frozen that she closed her bedroom door and did not emerge until late that morning.
Okay, how many times have you opened your bedroom around 4:20 ish a.m. and seen a tall, black clothing clad and wearing a mask individual walk by you? I am guessing the response is few to no times. Keep in mind Dylan reportedly opened her bedroom door three times during the 15 minutes or so that the killings were taking place. Dylan reportedly heard noises that included crying and whimpering coming from Kernodle’s room not far from her on the second floor.
Nowhere in the PCA does it mention that Bethany heard or saw anything from her first floor bedroom vantage point. In fact, most assume Bethany slept through it all.
Okay, as a journalist of 30+ years, I have many questions from this. Among them:
- Why would Dylan not go and knock on Xana’s door after the suspect left the home? Dylan reportedly tried texting different roommates in the home to no avail. Keep in mind that crying and whimpering are two different things. If Dylan heard what she thought was Xana both crying and whimpering, why not go check on her once safe to do so?
- Why not text and/or go downstairs once safe to do so and get your best friend Bethany up? The two then could have gone to check on Xana together. One would also think checking on the two women on the third floor would be a rationale line of thinking given there appeared to be a stranger in the home at such an odd hour.
- Why the long delay from when the incident occurred to someone (supposedly Bethany) calling 911? While none of us are privy to the medical examiner’s report, perhaps one or or more of the deceased may have lived had they gotten immediate medical attention. Yes, chances may be slim, but we will not know until more comes out at trial. In fact, much like the tragic Uvalde school shooting in 2022, we may never know here if one or more lives could have been saved if EMT’s were on the scene sooner than later.
- Finally, is there a chance Dylan and Bethany did not want authorities in the home right away? The home was a well-known party house. Could there have been things in the home that one or more residents would not have wanted police to discover. Trust me, police could care less about drinking and even drugs in a home when there have been four murders.
As we get to an October trial, hopefully we will learn more about what Dylan and Bethany know what really went down those early morning hours at 1122 King Road.
DavidAlanThomas 