Netflix’s ‘The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare’ Explores Dylan Mortensen’s Delayed 911 Call

The delay in Dylan Mortensen’s call for help has sparked extensive discussion surrounding the University of Idaho case. Netflix’s true crime documentary, ‘The Idaho Murders,’ has reignited public interest in the timeline of events that unfolded in the King Road house during the tragic night when Bryan Kohberger attacked four students.

For viewers catching up through the Netflix documentary, the haunting eight-hour gap between the attack and the eventual 911 call remains one of the most debated aspects of this tragedy.

According to court documents, the murders are believed to have occurred between 4 a.m. and 4:20 a.m. on November 13, 2022. Dylan Mortensen was awakened around this time and reportedly heard a male voice say, “It’s OK, Kaylee, I’m here for you,” followed by crying and the sight of a masked man in the residence.

At 4:19 a.m., Mortensen attempted to reach out to Kernodle, Goncalves, and Mogen, but none answered. Instead, she opted to text her other surviving roommate, Bethany Funke, rather than immediately dialing emergency services.

Dylan informed authorities that she had been awakened at 4 a.m. and, after failing to reach her housemates, texted Bethany, who responded. The two discussed a man in a ski mask being in their home, with Dylan expressing that she was “freaked out” and Bethany urging her to “come to my room, run.”

The two students remained locked in Bethany’s room for hours instead of contacting the police, and the reasoning behind this decision has become a focal point in public discussions about the case. It is believed that Dylan didn’t call 911 sooner due to shock and confusion about the events that had transpired, having quickly locked her door out of fear.

Further details from court filings reveal that Dylan stated she didn’t call 911 because she was intoxicated and struggled to accept what was happening. Bethany, on her part, thought the man she saw might have been part of a prank by Ethan Chapin’s fraternity brothers.

This explanation has elicited mixed reactions from viewers of the documentary, with some understanding the trauma involved, while others remain troubled by the delay. Moscow Police Chief Anthony Dahlinger addressed the question directly in the documentary, noting that investigators were puzzled by the roommates’ eight-hour wait to contact authorities.

Mortensen eventually called her friend Emily Alandt, asking her to come to the house. Alandt arrived with her boyfriend Hunter Johnson, and Alandt recounted Mortensen saying, “Something weird happened last night, I don’t really know if I was dreaming or not, but I’m really scared, can you come check out the house?” Initially, Alandt joked about bringing pepper spray, not realizing the gravity of the situation.

Upon entering the property, Johnson was the first to discover the bodies of Chapin and Kernodle upstairs. Friend Josie Lauteren recalled that as soon as she stepped into the house, she sensed something was deeply wrong. Johnson quickly instructed the others to call 911 after seeing what was upstairs, carefully wording the emergency to say there was an unconscious person rather than revealing the full extent of the horror, thus sparing them from immediate trauma.

The frantic 911 call was ultimately made by Mortensen and Funke around 11:55 a.m. on November 13, with one of the women sobbing to the dispatcher that something had happened in their house and they didn’t know what. Unfortunately, by the time help arrived, it was already too late for the four victims.

In the documentary, one investigator recalled asking the coroner whether anyone could have been saved had 911 been called immediately, to which the answer was no. Friends like Alandt have since countered the notion that the delay affected the outcome, asserting that the “what if” question is irrelevant because by the time anyone understood the situation, it would have been too late regardless.

Through unsealed court documents, the accounts of the surviving roommates, and reflections from friends who eventually uncovered the tragedy that morning, the narrative presented is one of shock rather than negligence. However, viewers continue to debate the timeline each time a new documentary revisits the case. Do you believe the eight-hour wait altered the outcome, or does the coroner’s response settle that question for good?