It’s been nearly three long years for the family members and friends of the four University of Idaho students who were stabbed in their off-campus home. Their brutal murders sparked a nationwide manhunt and shock in the small town of Moscow.

Judge Steven Hippler sentenced 30-year-old Bryan Kohberger to life in prison without the possibility of parole just weeks after the defendant took a controversial plea deal to avoid the death penalty.

The judge ruled after hours of emotional statements from the loved ones of Ethan Chapin, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Madison Mogen, 21. All of them spoke about the anger and devastation the gruesome killings had on their families and communities, reports Faithwire.

Amid an unimaginable grief, Kernoodle’s mother, Cara Northington, told Kohberger that her faith has given her the strength to endure and offer him forgiveness.

"Jesus has allowed me to forgive you for murdering my daughter without you even being sorry or asking for this," she told him in court. "I do not fear you or even let you rent space in my head anymore. This forgiveness has released me from any and all evil you have inflicted on me and my family.

Prosecutors said Kohberger, who was a criminal justice doctoral student at the time of the murders, had long planned the attack. DNA evidence, cell phone records, and surveillance footage tied Kohberger to the stabbings.

In addition to the four consecutive life sentences, Judge Hippler sentenced Kohberger to 10 years for burglary and $270,000 in fines.

Northington described her daughter as beautiful both inside and out and was someone who “brought joy and laughter to her friends, her family, and anyone in her presence.”

She goes on to tell Kohberger that he will one day have to stand before the Lord, telling him that heaven and hell are real places.

“I do pray for you,” she said. “I pray that, before this life is over, that you ask our Lord and Savior in your heart and to forgive you.”